India, Feb. 21 -- Existing home sales pulled back sharply in the month of January, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Friday.
NAR said existing home sales plunged by 4.9 percent to an annual rate of 4.08 million in January after surging by 2.9 percent to an upwardly revised rate of 4.29 million in December.
Economists had expected existing home sales to tumble by 2.8 percent to an annual rate of 4.12 million from the 4.24 million originally reported for the previous month.
The steeper than expected drop came a month after existing home sales jumped to their highest annual rate since reaching 4.31 million last February.
"Mortgage rates have refused to budge for several months despite multiple rounds...