Home Depot Gets Hammered

By Shawn Ward, Geezeo Co-Founder

Spending at home renovation stores is slowing considerably amid continued weakness in the overall housing market.

Even though new homes sales had a surprising uptick in September, rising 2.7% to 464,0001, home sales for the quarter are still down close to 8% driven largely by August's double-digit drop.

As a result, average sales per customer fell 23% since July at Home Depot, (HD Quote), according to the new Main Street Spending Index compiled by Geezeo, a personal finance Web site that helps consumers track their spending.

Lowe's(LOW Quote) , is holding up better with only an 8% drop in average spending per customer in the past four months,

Although Home Depot's sales have declined faster, its customers are still spending more, with average monthly purchases of $133.32 compared to $120.32 at Lowe's.

The continued fallout from the housing market collapse coupled with the credit crunch does not bode well for home renovation firms. Spending in stores like Home Depot and Lowe's will likely turnaround only if the housing market stabilizes. Until then, expect lackluster retail sales.

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Geezeo's Main Street Spending Index tracks more than 4 million consumer transactions from 800 companies doing business in the United States and Canada. Market segments include retail, dining out, entertainment, household and utilities. Data is anonymously collected weekly and based on up-to-date bank information.

To view the full index and see how other stocks are performing, click here: Main Street Spending Index.

For more information about Geezeo or to track your own expenses and find ways to save, visit www.geezeo.com. More than half of people using Geezeo's free budget tools are saving an estimated $1,200 annually.