Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released its latest nominal read on retail sales showing a decline of 0.6% from January 2008 and a 2.6% increase since February 2007 on an aggregate of all items including food, fuel and healthcare services.

Discretionary retail sales including home furnishings, home garden and building materials, consumer electronics and department store sales, on the other hand, experienced a significant decline falling 0.38% since January 2008 and 1.88% compared to February 2007.

Further, adjusted for inflation, discretionary retail sales declined 5.74% since February 2007.

Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released its latest nominal read on retail sales showing a increase of 0.2% from February 2008 and 2.0% since March 2007 on an aggregate of all items including food, fuel and healthcare services.

Discretionary retail sales including home furnishings, home garden and building materials, consumer electronics and department store sales, on the other hand, experienced a significant decline falling 0.58% since February 2008 and 3.66% compared to March 2007.

Further, adjusted for inflation, discretionary retail sales declined 0.61% since February 2008 and 7.05% since March 2007.

Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released its latest nominal read on retail sales showing 0.3% growth from December 2007 and 3.9% compared to January 2007 on an aggregate of all items including food, fuel and healthcare services.

Discretionary retail sales including home furnishings, home garden and building materials, consumer electronics and department store sales, on the other hand, experienced a significant decline falling 1.26% since December 2007 and 2.79% compared to January 2007, the worst nominal year-over-year decline since February 2003.

Further, adjusted for inflation, discretionary retail sales declined 6.48% since January 2007, the single largest monthly decline since at least January 1993.

Today, the Commerce Department released their monthly Retail Sales Report for October which continued to show an interesting and, with some pretty significant revisions to past results, even more significant correlation between declining consumer spending, particularly on discretionary items, and the decline in home values.

Sources inside the Massachusetts Association of Realtors (MAR) report that tomorrows monthly existing home sales results will show that January single family home sales crashed 27.7% on a year-over-year basis while condo sales collapsed 33.7% over the same period.

Further, the single family median selling price declined 5.6% on a year-over-year basis to $321,000 while condo median prices increased 3.5% to $277,500.

The following charts (click for larger) show the decline in single family home sales since 2005.

Notice that January 2008 is registering a home sales count well below even the 2007 level as well as indicating that the February’s results will be well below 2000 units, a significant decline.

First, to all U.K. readers I want to properly and whole heartedly welcome you the housing malaise!

How’s that for an U.S. export! Take that you Redcoats!

Recently, the two most prominent and long running monthly U.K. housing price indices registered the largest year-over-year declines in at least 15 years.

The “Nationwide” series, which reported data through May indicated that U.K. home prices declined 4.4% on a year-over-year basis while the “Halifax” series, which reported data through April indicated that U.K. home prices declined 3.68% on a year-over-year basis.

Sources inside the Massachusetts Association of Realtors (MAR) report that next week’s monthly existing home sales results will show that April single family home sales crashed 15.8% on a year-over-year basis while condo sales collapsed a stunning 26.6% over the same period.

Further, the single family median home value declined a whopping 8.7% on a year-over-year basis to $314,900 while condo median prices remained unchanged at $275,000.

It’s also important to note that the April single family home sales count was the lowest April count on record since 1993 and at 2803 units sold was 30.72% below the record April peak set in April 2004.

The following charts (click for larger) show the decline in single family home sales since 2005.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) finally released their Pending Home Sales Report for September 2007 showing yet again a truly stark and horrendous continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and in every region.

Sources inside the Massachusetts Association of Realtors (MAR) report that next week’s monthly existing home sales results will show that February single family home sales crashed 22.9% on a year-over-year basis while condo sales collapsed 34.6% over the same period.

Further, the single family median home value declined 4.6% on a year-over-year basis to $310,000 while condo median prices decreased 6.7% to $252,000.

It’s also important to note that February’s single family home sales count was the lowest February count on record since 1996 and at 1857 units sold was 26.91% below the record peak set in February 1999 and 22.9% below the more recent peak of February 2007.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Pending Home Sales Report for December 2007 showing accelerating weakness to existing home sales activity and a clear continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and across every region.

Continuing down the second slope of the pullback in demand for residential housing, ALL regions are now tracking at or below the lowest values ever recorded with the Northeast now registering over 30% fewer sales than in 2001, the first year Pending Home Sales were tracked.

As usual, NAR Senior Economist Laurence Yun makes another attempt at self interested spin and false optimism suggesting that home sales have been moving in a “narrow range” and promoting the idea that higher conforming loan limits will thwart the decline.

Yesterday’s release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices for October continues to reflect significant weakness for the nation’s housing markets with 17 of the 20 metro areas tracked reporting year-over-year declines and now ALL metro areas showing declines from their respective peaks.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Pending Home Sales Report for January 2008 showing accelerating weakness to existing home sales activity and a clear continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and in every region.

As the decline in demand for residential housing enters its third year, it’s important to consider the significance of both the extent of the decline and the severity of the oncoming declines to existing home sales activity clearly indicated by the current 20% year-over-year drop-off in pending home sales.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Pending Home Sales Report for October 2007 showing yet again a truly stark continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and in every region.

Today’s release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices for November continues to reflect tremendous weakness for the nation’s housing markets with 17 of the 20 metro areas tracked reporting year-over-year declines and ALL metro areas showing declines from their respective peaks.

Today’s release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices for September continues to reflect significant weakness for the nation’s housing markets with 13 of the 20 metro areas tracked reporting year-over-year declines and now ALL metro areas showing declines from their respective peaks.

Today’s release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices for December continues to reflect tremendous weakness for the nation’s housing markets with 17 of the 20 metro areas tracked reporting year-over-year declines and ALL metro areas showing substantial declines from their respective peaks.

Furthermore, the decline to the 10 city composite index declined a record 9.82% as compared to December 2006 far surpassing the all prior year-over-year decline records firmly placing the current decline in uncharted territory in terms of relative intensity.

This report appears to continue to indicate that during the fall we essentially entered the serious price “free-fall” phase (look at the charts below) of the housing decline.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Pending Home Sales Report for November 2007 showing a truly stark and even worsening continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and in every region.

Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Pending Home Sales Report for February showing a weakening to existing home sales activity and a clear continuation of the historic decline to residential housing on a year-over-year basis, both nationally and across every region.

As the decline in demand for residential housing slumps through its third year, it’s important to consider the significance of both the extent of the decline and the severity of the oncoming declines to existing home sales activity clearly indicated by the current 21.4% year-over-year drop-off in pending home sales.

Today, the U.S. Census Department released its monthly New Residential Home Sales Report for November showing a further deterioration of the already hideous falloff in demand for new residential homes both nationally and in every region as well as again reporting significant downward revisions to August, September and October’s results.

Building on yesterday’s post, let’s take a look at some data that might provide a basis for drawing a conclusion to the first question posed, namely:

1.) What, to date, has been the “direct” impact of the housing decline on the labor market including fallout from construction, real estate services, building materials, home furnishings, home services and retail?

Today’s release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices for March continues to reflect the extraordinary weakness seen in the nation’s housing markets with now 19 of the 20 metro areas tracked reporting year-over-year declines and ALL metro areas showing substantial declines from their respective peaks.

Readers should take a moment to carefully reflect on the charts below as this level of price decline occurring simultaneously across the whole of the U.S. is not only unprecedented but is probably the purest expression of the fundamental collapse of wealth and well being for our nations typical home owning household.

Today, the U.S. Census Department released its monthly New Residential Home Sales Report for October that continued to confirm the hideous falloff in demand for new residential homes both nationally and in every region as well as again reporting significant downward revisions to July, August and September’s results.

Today, the U.S. Census Department released its monthly New Residential Home Sales Report for April showing continued deterioration in demand for new residential homes across every tracked region resulting in a startling 42.0% year-over-year decline and a truly whopping 62.13% peak sales decline nationally.

It’s important to keep in mind that these dramatic declines are coming on the back of the significant declines seen in 2006 and 2007 further indicating the enormity of the housing bust and clearly dispelling any notion of a bottom being reached.

Today, the U.S. Census Department released its monthly New Residential Home Sales Report for December showing accelerating deterioration of the already hideous falloff in demand for new residential homes both nationally and in every region resulting in an astounding median sales price drop of 10.42%.

Additionally, 2007 marked the single worst declines in new home sales ever recorded in the 45 years the data has been tracked.

Today, the Federal Reserve released their monthly read of industrial production showing continued declines across many industries, particularly for those related to consumer spending, construction and business vehicles, resulting in a tepid 0.3% increase to total aggregate production.

“Final product” consumer durable goods continue to show accelerating weakness falling 3.92% as an aggregate on a year-over-year basis, with particularly significant declines coming specifically from home appliances, furniture and carpeting which declined for the twenty first consecutive month by 7.90% on a year-over-year basis.

Construction supply production has been showing the most severe contraction to wood products seen in at least the last 20 years.

Like the MIT/CRE Property Index, Standard & Poor’s also tracks commercial real estate (CRE) prices for various commercial property types.

Today’s results, including data gathered up to November 2007, further confirms the recent slowdown seen in the commercial real estate markets with the National composite index declining 1.36% since the peak set in August 2007.

Most components experienced weakness as compared to respective peaks set between July and August 2007 with the Office component showing a 5.24% peak decline, the Retail component showing a 2.01% peak decline, the Warehouse component showing a 1.57% peak decline and the Apartment component showing an increase of 2.44% as compared to November 2006.

Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released their April read of construction spending again demonstrating the significant extent to which private residential construction is contracting particularly for single family structures while non-residential spending continued to grow essentially in-line with its recent expansion.

With the tremendous weakening trend continuing, total residential construction spending fell 21.01% as compared to April 2007 and 37.39% from the peak set in February 2006.

Worse off though was private single family residential construction spending which declined 37.51% as compared to April 2007 and a truly grotesque 56.07% from the peak set in February 2006.

There has been growing speculation that the commercial real estate (CRE) markets will inevitably follow the lead of the residential markets down to a recessionary correction.