In July, existing home sales in the United States experienced a modest increase on a month-over-month basis, as unsold inventory saw a decrease. According to data released by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), existing home sales rose by 1.3% to reach a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million units.
This figure slightly surpassed the projected estimate of 3.94 million units as surveyed by Bloomberg. However, on an annual basis, home sales were down by 2.5%. NAR Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun commented, "Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish. However, consumers are beginning to see more choices in the market, and affordability has improved thanks to lower interest rates." As for unsold properties, inventory levels indicated a four-month supply at the current sales pace in July, which signifies a reduction from 4.1 months in June, while being higher than the 3.3 months reported in July 2023.
The total inventory recorded a slight increase of 0.8% sequentially and was approximately 20% higher year-over-year, amounting to 1.33 million units. The median sales price for existing homes climbed by 4.2% year-over-year, settling at $422,600. However, this marked a decline from June's all-time high of $426,900.
Specifically for single-family homes, sales were reported at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.57 million in July, which represents a 1.4% increase from the previous month, albeit a 1.4% decrease compared to the same period last year. Conversely, existing condominium and co-op sales remained unchanged at 380,000 units, but this figure reflects a decline of roughly 12% on a year-over-year basis. Yun further noted, "The median price of condominiums is generally lower, yet the condominium market seems to be underperforming in comparison to the single-family housing market." Moreover, on Monday, Redfin (RDFN) reported a year-over-year decline in existing home sales, marking the lowest level for July since records began in 2012..