US Existing Home Sales Rise to 3.99 Million in September
Sales climb 1.5% from August even as they remain 2.2% below year-ago levels, the National Association of Realtors says
Published
Existing home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.99 million units in September, the National Association of Realtors said, above the 3.95 million pace expected and up from 3.93 million in August.
The increase amounts to a 1.5% rise from the prior month, though sales remain 2.2% lower than a year earlier, the NAR said. Total housing inventory stood at 1.60 million units, up 1.9% from August and 4.6% from a year ago, leaving a 4.8-month supply unchanged from the prior month, according to the NAR.
The median existing-home price was $417,500 in September, up 1.3% from a year earlier and the 39th straight month of annual price gains, the NAR said. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.86% in September, up from 6.67% in August and 6.35% a year earlier, Freddie Mac data cited by the NAR show. Sales this year have ranged from 3.98 million in March to a high of 4.17 million in May, with September's reading near the low end of that span, according to data cited by FinanceCalendar.com.
The uptick, roughly 1% above both last month's level and forecasts, points to a housing market that is holding steady rather than slipping further after a long stretch of depressed transactions. The gain is modest enough to read as a continuation of a narrow trading range rather than a turning point, and whether it persists through coming months will show whether buyers are adjusting to current borrowing costs or whether tight inventory keeps sales capped near current levels.