by Calculated Risk on 8/19/2005 12:32:00 PM

The Sacramento Bee reports: Region's home sales signal softer market.

Jim Eggleston, owner of Sacramento's biggest residential "For Sale" sign installer, predicts this will be his busiest week in 21 years in business. He's had to hire an extra worker and buy a new delivery truck since his crew planted a one-day record of 225 signs on Monday.

"There are whole lot of houses going up for sale," says Eggleston, who promises next-day installation when a real estate broker orders a new sign. "The number of 'For Sale' signs we're removing keeps going down relative to the number we're putting up."

In my neighborhood, I see the same phenomenon. And the Desert Sun (Palm Springs, CA) reports:

Price rises come as local sales counts have recently been falling, and the inventory of unsold resale homes is up dramatically from a year ago.

According to DataQuick, the total 1,259 new-construction and resale homes sold in July was down 12.1 percent from a year ago.

And unsold resale inventory is currently at around 3,452 properties, according to Greg Berkemer, executive vice president of the California Desert Association of Realtors. That figure is up 63 percent from a year ago and is more than twice the 1,400 seen in April 2004.

Next week nationwide existing home inventories for July will be reported. Should be interesting.