WASHINGTON (National Association of Realtors) – Sales of existing homes fell last month. Prices rose modestly as inventories eased, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Total existing-home sales — including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops — declined 3.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.8 million units, 11.4 percent below the 6.5 million unit pace same time last year.
“Although we’ve seen seasonal month-to-month price increases over the past four months, this is the first time in 11 months that the median home price is higher than the year-ago price,” said NAR Senior Economist Lawrence Yun.
Last month’s national median existing-home price for all housing types was $230,100, up 0.3 percent from last year. Total housing inventory fell 4.2 percent to 4.2 million existing homes available for sale, representing an almost nine-month supply at the current sales pace, the same as in May.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the South eased by 1.7 percent to an annual sales rate of 2.3 million, 11.4 percent below a year ago. The median price in the South was $190,800, up 0.7 percent from June 2006.