US existing home sales unexpectedly drop in April

4M existing houses sold last month, down 0.5% from March

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Existing home sales in the US fell 0.5% month-on-month in April, missing forecasts, according to a report Thursday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Existing home sales, which measure the change in the number of existing residential buildings sold, fell to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4 million.

The figure was below forecasts of 4.15 million units, and was down from 4.02 million in March.

"Home sales have been at 75% of normal or pre-pandemic activity for the past three years, even with seven million jobs added to the economy," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. "Pent-up housing demand continues to grow, though not realized. Any meaningful decline in mortgage rates will help release this demand."

On an annual basis, existing home sales also declined 2% in April.

The median existing home sales price rose 1.8% annually to $414,000, with the Northeast and Midwest of the county posting price increases, while the South and West registering price decreases.

"At the macro level, we are still in a mild seller's market," said Yun. "But with the highest inventory levels in nearly five years, consumers are in a better situation to negotiate for better deals."

Kaynak:

This news has been read 164 times in total