U.S. existing-home sales declined 2.4% month-over-month as of the last measure, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), reversing February’s sales gain of 14.5%. Fluctuations in mortgage interest rates have caused buyers to pull back, with pending sales dropping 5.2% month-over-month. Meanwhile, the median existing-home sales price declined for the second month in a row, falling 0.9% nationally from last year, the largest year-over-year decline since January 2012, according to NAR.
New Listings were down 29.2% for single-family homes and 40.7% for Condo/TIC/Coop properties. Pending Sales decreased 27.5% for single-family homes and 22.2% for Condo/TIC/Coop properties.
The Median Sales Price was down 23.2% to $1,575,000 for single-family homes and 13.7% to $1,177,500 for Condo/TIC/Coop properties. Months' Supply of Inventory increased by 35.7% for single-family units and 3.1% for Condo/TIC/Coop units.
Housing inventory remains tight nationwide, with only 980,000 units available for sale heading into April, a 5.4% increase from one year earlier. However, the number of homes for sale is down compared to the same period in 2019, prior to the pandemic. The lack of existing inventory continues to impact home sales, and with only 2.6 months’ supply of homes at last measure, competition for available properties remains strong, especially in certain price categories, with multiple offers occurring on about a third of properties, according to NAR.
