MNI BRIEF: US Sept Existing Home Sales Fall 1.0% To 3.84M
MNI (WASHINGTON) - U.S. sales of existing homes fell 1.0% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.84 million in September from 3.88 million in August, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday, coming in lower than markets expected. Sales over the past year have fallen 3.5% and are on pace in 2024 to be the slowest since 1995, the NAR said.
The national median home price climbed to USD404,500 or 3.0% from September 2023, the 15th straight month of year-over-year price increases. The median sales prices declined 2.3% from the prior month. The inventory of unsold existing homes rose by 1.5% from the prior month to 1.39 million at the end of September, or the equivalent of 4.3 months’ supply at the current monthly sales pace.
NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said "all the factors are there" for an increase in home sales but noted the recent increase in mortgage rates and uncertainty around the upcoming elections. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.44% as of October 17, up from 6.32% one week ago but down from 7.63% one year ago. "One other factor that could be at play is we have this large budget, so any time government has to borrow, borrow, borrow, that just means that there is less mortgage money available for lending into the housing market, all else equal," he said.