by Year-over-year sales rose in the Midwest, South and West and declined in the Northeast, while sales from April rose in the Northeast, Midwest and South and were level in the West
WASHINGTON – Year-over-year and month-over-month existing home sales rose 3.2% according to the National Association of Realtors, suggesting that inventory continues to move despite higher sales prices.
The NAR report said that there were 4.17 million single family and condominium sales in May, up 3.2% from May 2025 and also up 3.2% from April. Sales from May 2025 rose in the Midwest, South and West and declined in the Northeast while sales compared with April rose in the Northeast, Midwest and South and were unchanged in the West.
There were 3.8 million, single-family home sales, or 91.1% of the total. This was up 3.3% from May 2025 and up 3.5% from April. The median sales price was $434,300, up 1.3% from May 2025.
There were 370,000 condominium and co-op sales, up 2.8% from May 2025 and unchanged from April. The median price was $378,200, up 1.7% from May 2025.
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said the numbers show that more Americans are moving and that existing home sales rose to the highest level since December.
“This is great news for the housing market and the economy,” he added, noting that improving affordability is helping drive the momentum. “Even with mortgage rates ticking up compared to earlier in the year, they remain lower than a year ago and are essentially at the long-term historical average. Income gains are also outpacing home price growth by a small margin in most parts of the country.”
Citing Freddie Mac, the NAR said that the average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.44% in May, down from 6.82% in May 2025 but up from 6.33% in April.
Inventory remained high at 1.55 million units, up .6% from May 2025 and up 3.3% from April. This represents a 4.5-month supply of unsold inventory, down from 4.6 months in May 2026 and unchanged from April. The median sales price also was higher, at $429,300, up 1.3% from $423,700 in May 2025, marking the 35th consecutive month of year-over-year price increases.
By region, activity was as follows:
In the Northeast, existing home sales totaled 460,000, down 8% from May 2025 and up 2 .2% from April. The median price was $534,900, up 4.2% from May 2025.
In the Midwest, existing home sales totaled 1 million, up 2% from May 2025 and up 6.4% from April. The Median price was $336,300, up 2.8% from May 2025.
In the South, existing home sales totaled 1.96 million, up 5.9% from May 2025 and up 3.2% from April. Up 5.9% year-over-year. The median price was $373,100, up 1.1% from May 2025.
In the West, existing home sales totaled 750,000, up 5.6% from May 2025 and unchanged from April. The median sales price was $625,900, down .7% from May 2025.
The NAR also released its Housing Affordability Index, which registered at 105.6, up from 97.5 in May 2025. It noted that year-over-year affordability improved across all regions, including the Northeast (+5.1%); the Midwest, (+6.6%); the South (+8.4%) and the West (+11.0%)
Other highlights of the report were as follows:
+ Homes were on the market for a median of 29 days, up from 27 days in May 2025 and down from 32 days last in April.
+ An estimated 35% of sales were first-time homebuyers, up from 30% in May 2025 and up from 33% in April
+ 25% of transactions were cash sales, down from 27% in May 2025 and unchanged from April. Also, 14% of transactions were individual investors or second-home buyers, down from 17% in May 2025 and down from 16% in April.
+ 1% of sales were distressed sales including foreclosures and short sales, down from 3% in May 2025 and down from 2% last month.
“The new record-high May home price reflects solid fundamentals for homeowners and ongoing supply constraints,” Yun said. “Only 1% of all home sales involved a foreclosure or an underwater situation in which the sale price could not cover the outstanding mortgage balance. This shows that homeowners are on solid financial footing.”
“Increased home sales mean more economic activity — lawn care, furniture purchases, moving services, mortgage originations and other related business activities all get a boost,” he added.
