by In addition to posting their first year-over-year gain since January, sales were also up 2% from June
WASHINGTON — The National Association of Realtors reported that July existing home sales rose .8% from July last year, posting their first year-over-year increase since January.
Sales rose to 4.01 million in July, which also was up 2% from June. The NAR said that year-over-year sales rose in the South, Northeast, and Midwest, and fell in the West, while month-over-month sales increased in the Northeast, South, and West, and fell in the Midwest.
The median sales price for all existing housing types in July was $422,400, which was up 0.2% from one year ago ($421,400), marking the 25th consecutive month of year-over-year price increases.
The total inventory of existing homes was 1.55 million units, up 15.7 % from 1.34 million in July 2024 and up .6% from June. This represents a 4.6-month supply of unsold inventory, which is up from four months in July 2024 and down from 4.7 months in June.
“The ever-so-slight improvement in housing affordability is inching up home sales,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Wage growth is now comfortably outpacing home price growth, and buyers have more choices. Condominium sales increased in the South region, where prices had been falling for the past year.”
“Homebuyers are in the best position in more than five years to find the right home and negotiate for a better price,” he added. “Current inventory is at its highest since May 2020, during the COVID lockdown.”
Single-family home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.64 million, or 90.8% of the total, up 1.1% from July 2024 and up 2% from June. The median single-family home price was $428,500 in July, up .3% from July 2024.
There were 370,000 condominium and co-op sales in July, down 2.6% from July 2024 and up 2.8% from June. The median price was $362,600, down 1.2% from July 2024.
Yun noted that near zero growth in home prices indicates that roughly half the country is experiencing price reductions.
“Overall, homeowners are doing well financially,” Yun said. “Only 2% of sales were foreclosures or short sales – essentially a historic low. The market’s health is supported by a cumulative 49% home price appreciation for a typical American homeowner from pre-COVID July 2019 to July this year.”
By region, the activity was as follows:
In the Northeast, there were 500,000 existing homes sold, up 2% from July 2024 and up 8.7% from June. The median price was $509,300, up .8% from July 2024
In the Midwest there were 940,00 existing homes sold, up 1.1% from July 2024 and down 1% from June. The median price was $333,800 up 3.9% from July 2024.
In the South there were 1.85 million existing home sold, up 2.2% year over year and up 2.2% from June. The median price was $367,400, down .6% from July 2024.
In the West there were 720,000 homes sold down 4% from July 2024 and up 1.4% from June. The median price was $620,700, down 1.4% from July 2024.
Other highlights of the July report were as follows:
+ Homes were on the market for a median of 28 days, up from 24 days from July 2024 and up from 27 days in June
+ 28% of sales were first-time homebuyers, down from 29% in July 2024 and up from 30% in June
+ 31% of transactions were cash sales, up from 27% from July 2024 and up from 29% in June. Some 20% of transactions were individual investors or second-home buyers, up from 13% in July 2024 and up from 14% in June
+ 2% of sales were distressed sales including foreclosures and short sales, up from 1% in July 2024 and down from 3% in June
+Citing Freddie Mac, the NAR said that the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.72 in July, down from 6.85% in July 2024 and down from 6.82% in June
