The National
Association of Realtors (NAR) reported on Thursday that the U.S. existing home
sales decreased by 0.5 per cent m-o-m to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.00 million
in April from an unrevised 4.02 million in March. This represented the
lowest rate since October 2024 (3.96 million).
Economists had forecast
home re-sales to drop to a 4.10 million-unit pace last
month.
In y-o-y terms,
existing home sales fell 2.0 per cent in April.
According to
the report, two out of four
major regions - the West (-3.9 per cent m-o-m) and Northeast (-2.0 per cent m-o-m) - posted declines in
existing-home sales on a m-o-m basis, while the Midwest (+2.1 per cent
m-o-m) recorded an advance and the South registered no change.
In y-o-y terms,
sales dropped in the South (-3.2 per cent), West (-1.3 per cent) and Midwest (+1.0 per cent), but were unchanged in the Northeast.
Over the
reviewed period, the median existing home price for all housing types rose by 1.8
per cent y-o-y to $414,700,
underpinned by an increase in prices in the Northeast and Midwest. That marked the 22nd
straight month of year-over-year gains in median existing-home price.
Single-family
home sales came in at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 3.63 million in April,
down 0.3 per cent m-o-m and 1.4 per cent y-o-y. Meanwhile, existing condominium and co-op sales were recorded
at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 370,000 units last month, down 2.6 per cent
m-o-m and 7.5 per cent y-o-y.
Commenting on
the latest data, Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, noted that home sales had
been at 75% of normal or pre-pandemic activity for the past three years, even
with seven million jobs added to the economy. “Pent-up housing demand continues
to grow, though not realised. Any meaningful decline in mortgage rates will
help release this demand,” he added.