By Rex Nutting
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Sales of U.S. existing homes plunged 16.7% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.45 million from 6.54 million in November as a popular tax credit was set to expire, a national real estate trade group estimated Monday. The 16.7% percentage decline from November to December was the largest on record, the National Association of Realtors reported. The decline was larger than the 11% drop to 5.80 million that was expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. Sales in December were up 15% compared with December 2008. The median sales price rose to $178,300 in December, up 1.5% compared with a year earlier. It's the first year-over-year increase in prices since August 2007.
