Existing Home Sales fell for the fourth straight month per the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), as June’s transactions were down 5.4% from May and also 5.4% from a year ago. This report measures closings on existing homes in June and likely reflects people shopping for homes in April and May when rates were above 7%.
What’s the bottom line? While the number of closings declined in June, some of the internals within the report point to demand remaining even in the face of elevated rates. Homes remained on the market for a shorter period than in recent months, an average of 22 days in June, down from 24 days in May, 26 days in April and 33 days in March. Plus, almost one in three homes (29%) sold above list price.
Regarding inventory, there were 1.32 million homes available for sale at the end of June, up 3.1% from May and 23.4% from a year earlier. While this remains below healthy levels, rising inventory is certainly a step in the right direction to help improve the persistent tight housing supply we’ve seen across much of the country.