Housing Market Hamstrung by Low Appraisals

The housing market stumbled again in April, as tight lending practices continue to hamstring buyers.

Existing-home sales fell 0.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.05 million in April, down from 5.09 million in March, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Compared to last April, when buying activity spiked due to the homebuyer tax credit, sales in are down 12.9 percent. Still, the housing market has managed six gains in the past nine months.

"Although sales are clearly up from the cyclical lows of last summer, home sales are being held back 15 to 20 percent due to the very restrictive loan underwriting standards," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun in a statement released Thursday.