The sales of previously owned homes dropped 1.5% in Dec. 2022 at an annualized pace of 4.02 million units.  This figure was 34% lower than in Dec. 2021 as low supply continues to support prices to some extent.  Total sales for the year were down 17.8% from 2021, which has fallen for 11 straight months amid higher mortgage rates.  By the end of December, the total housing inventory declined by 13.4% to 970,000 units. In addition, unsold inventory is at a 2.9-month supply at the current sales pace, down from 3.3 months in November.  The root cause is that sellers are not entering the market, given falling prices and weaker demand. The total inventory is higher due to homes sitting on the market longer.