Washington

SALES of previously owned US homes fell more than expected in January as a tight supply forced up prices, showing the residential real-estate market faces an uneven recovery.

Purchases slowed 4.9 per cent to a 4.82 million annualised rate, the least since April, after a 5.07 million pace that was higher than previously estimated, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed on Monday in Washington. The median forecast of 74 economists in a Bloomberg survey called for a fall to 4.95 million.