Home Resales Retreat 1.3% in ‘87, First Drop Since ’82

Sales of existing single-family homes declined slightly in 1987, the first setback since the recession year of 1982, a real estate trade group reported Monday.

The National Assn. of Realtors said sales dropped about 1.3% to 3.52 million units last year, compared to a seven-year high of 3.57 million homes resold in 1986.

The year ended on a weak note as well, with a 3.8% decline in sales in December following a 4.5% sales decline in November. The back-to-back monthly declines pushed the seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales down to 3.28 million units last month.

In California, sales of existing, single-family detached homes climbed 14% in December from November to 528,869 units on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the California Assn. of Realtors.