Nationally, existing home sales fell by 8.6 percent in November, says the P-I. Troublingly, "sales of distressed properties made up 45 percent of all property sales in November." But here's the kicker for local home shoppers and sellers: "Sales of existing homes in the Seattle area were down nearly 37 percent in November from October and 45 percent from November 2007." Seattle Bubble reports that in King County, the existing inventory of homes on the market, selling at the current rate, would take nine months to work through. They also have a cool graphic that breaks the inventory down for you. more ›