July new home sales fall for third straight month

So many facets of this economy are dependent on home sales. Untill this shows some serious strength, the economy won't.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — U.S. sales of new homes declined in July for the third straight month, a sign of continued woes in the housing market.

Sales fell 0.7% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 298,000, the slowest pace since February, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Sales had reached 316,000 in April before slipping.

The drop was a surprise to analysts. The consensus forecast of Wall Street economists was for a 1% gain in home sales to a 315,000 rate.