Home sales across the country fell about 13 percent last year, the National Association of Realtors said today. The number of sales -- not quite 5.7 million -- was the fifth-highest on record, the group notes. (That's another way of saying that sales dropped almost to 2002 levels.)

Unsold homes fell about 7 percent in December, a hopeful sign for sellers, though agents have noted that it could be temporary. Some sellers pull their homes off the market around the holidays with the intention of trying again during the stronger spring season.