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NEW YORK, April 23 (Reuters) - Pulte Homes Inc (PHM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the No. 3 U.S. home builder, reported a much bigger loss on Wednesday after a large charge related to inventory and other land charges, a reflection of the deeply sagging U.S. housing market.

The first-quarter net loss increased to $696.1 million, or $2.75 per share, far worse than the average analyst forecasts of a 95 cent loss.

A year earlier Pulte reported a loss of $85.7 million, or 34 cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter.

The first-quarter 2008 loss included $663.6 million of charges related to inventory impairments and other land-related charges. A year ago, the company reported charges of $132.1 million.

"The difficult housing environment continued to erode during the first quarter of 2008," Richard Dugas Jr., president and chief executive, said in a statement. "Buyer demand for new homes continues to be soft, home prices remain under pressure and overall buyer confidence is weak."

JMP Securities analyst Jim Wilson said the size of the write-downs were stunning, especially compared with those already reported by other U.S. home builders, who have seen impairments and write-downs taper off.

"There the only one who has taken higher charges and they give no explanation," he said.

The company is scheduled to hold a conference call Thursday morning.