Last year was the worst year for housing in 25 years. Resales of U.S. homes and condos crashed 2.2% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.89 million. Not even the National Association of Realtors could spin their way out of these numbers.

For the year as a whole, sales of single-family homes fell 13 percent, while the median sales price of a single-family home dropped for the first time in the 40 years.