WASHINGTON—U.S. home sales fell more than expected in November after five straight months of gains amid a shortage of properties and more expensive houses, but the housing market remains underpinned by record-low mortgage rates. The National Association of Realtors said on Dec. 22 that existing home sales fell 2.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.69 million units last month. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast sales declining 1.0 percent to a rate of 6.70 million units in November. Existing home sales, which account for the bulk of U.S. home sales, surged 25.8 percent on a year-on-year basis in November. Sales fell in the South, Midwest, and Northeast. They were flat in the West. The housing market has been the economy’s star performer, thanks to pent-up demand and historically low mortgage rates. The COVID-19 pandemic has left 21.8 percent of the labor force working from home. That has …