Shares of local real estate companies stood pat Thursday despite another spate of bad housing news, and expectations of more to come a sign that many of the stocks may have already bottomed out.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that new-homes sales tumbled in August to the lowest level in seven years, dipping by 8.3 percent compared to July. The report said that sales were down to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 795,000 units, marking the lowest level since June 2000.

The home sales report was released on the same day that the government reported that homebuilders slashed spending on housing projects by 12 percent in the spring, marking the sixth quarter in a row where spending was cut.

Even so, Calabasas-based Countrywide Financial Corp., despite reports of surging foreclosures and poor home sales, saw it shares rise 11 cents to $18.49 after losing as much as 12 percent this week.

IndyMac Bancorp Inc. gained 2 percent to $23.54, a week after the Pasadena-based lender announced it was cutting its workforce by as much as 10 percent.

Local builders including Ryland Corp. also were stable. Shares in Calabasas-based Ryland were down 1 percent to $20.78 after shedding 18 percent so far this week.

The decline in the residential lending market has slowed commercial lending. But shares in the world’s largest commercial real estate broker, El Segundo-based CB Richard Ellis Group Inc., which had lost more than 7 percent for the week, were up 2 percent to $28.48 in early trading Thursday.