U.S. existing-home sales advanced for the third straight month, climbing 2.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.24 million units, a 10-month high, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). Sales were up 9.3% year-over year, driven largely by purchases of homes priced $500,000 and above. Month over-month, sales rose in the South, Northeast, and the West but fell in the Midwest, with all four regions reporting year-over-year gains.
• Single Family Closed Sales were up 8.9 percent to 3,740.
• Townhouse-Condo Closed Sales were up 8.7 percent to 1,315.
• Adult Communities Closed Sales were down 2.0 percent to 448.
• Single Family Median Sales Price increased 13.0 percent to $565,000.
• Townhouse-Condo Median Sales Price increased 7.9 percent to $426,250.
• Adult Communities Median Sales Price increased 3.3 percent to $371,000.
According to NAR, total housing inventory was 1.15 million units heading into January, a 13.5% decrease from the previous month but a 16.2% increase from the same period one year earlier, for a 3.3-month supply at the current sales pace. Housing supply remains down compared to pre-pandemic levels, and the limited number of homes on the market continues to push sales prices higher nationwide, with the median existing-home price rising 6% year-over-year to $404,400.