Home sales see shrinking profits as prices fall in most of the US

• Profit margins on typical home sales slumped to a two-year low in the first quarter, ATTOM data shows.
• Home prices declined across most of the country in that stretch.
• The drop-off in profit margins marked the third consecutive quarter of nationwide declines. 

Profit margins on typical home sales nationwide shrank to a two-year low in the first quarter, according to ATTOM data released Thursday.

Margins narrowed to 44.2% from 48.7% in the prior quarter as most of the country saw declines in home prices. It marked the third consecutive quarterly decrease and a continued drop from a peak of 56.1% in the second quarter of last year.