ARLINGTON, Va.—Existing home sales fell at an accelerated rate of 5.9% in July to a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate of 4.81 million units.
The slowdown represents a 20.2% decrease in sales compared to last year, noted NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long.
“Existing home sales fell for the sixth straight month in July,” said Long. “Outside of the immediate onset of COVID in 2020, July sales levels were the lowest of any month since 2014.”
“Supply remains tight, but conditions are improving modestly as a result of the slower sales price,” added Long.
Based on current month sales, there were 3.3 months of supply at the end of July, with analysts considering six months of inventory a rough balance between supply and demand.
Sales fell in all four regions. In the West, sales fell by 9.4% on the month, followed by the Northeast (-7.5), the South (-6.2), and the Midwest (-1.6). Meanwhile, the median existing-home price, non-seasonally adjusted, declined by 2.4% in July to $403,800, representing a 10.8% increase compared to a year ago, noted Long.
Limited Trade-Ups
“Higher borrowing rates and lower demand have resulted in a slower construction pace, which limits trade-up possibilities for current homeowners,” Long said.
In addition, homes are staying on the market for just two weeks, which ties last month for lowest figure in the last decade, he said.
“The housing market is starting to show signs of stabilizing, but improvement is unlikely without a large drop in rates or the appearance of substantial quantity of inventory,” Long said.
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