Report: National home sales declined in August, except in Northeast
Sales of existing homes dipped nationwide in August after three straight months of gains, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), but the Northeast region was the exception.
In the Northeast, existing home sales were at an annual rate of 700,000, unchanged from July and up 6.1 percent over a year ago, according to NAR. Meanwhile, sales declined 1.5 percent in the Midwest; 6.6 percent in the South, and 7.8 percent in the West. Nationally, home sales dropped 4.8 percent to an annual rate of 5.31 million in August, NAR said.
"Sales activity was down in many parts of the country last month — especially in the South and West — as the persistent summer theme of tight inventory levels likely deterred some buyers," Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said in a statement. "The good news for the housing market is that price appreciation the last two months has started to moderate from the unhealthier rate of growth seen earlier this year."
The median existing home price for all housing types in August was $228,700, which is 4.7 percent above the August 2014 price of $218,400. August's price increase marks the 42nd consecutive month of year–over–year gains.
Meanwhile, total housing inventory at the end of August rose 1.3 percent to 2.29 million existing homes available for sale, but is 1.7 percent lower than a year ago, NAR said.
"With sales and overall demand higher than a year ago and supply mostly unchanged, low inventories will likely continue to limit options for those looking to buy this fall even with the overall pool of buyers shrinking because of seasonal factors," Yun said.
Image source: Freedigitalphotos.net
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