U.S. Existing Home Sales Decline

The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) reported July 25, 2007 that total existing home sales in the U.S., including single-family, condominium, townhouse and co-op homes, fell 3.8 percent compared to May 2007 and dropped 11.4 percent compared to June 2006.

Total housing inventory fell 4.2 percent at the end of June 2007 to 4.20 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.8-month supply at the current sales pace, the same as a downwardly revised 8.8-month supply in May.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $230,100 in June, up 0.3 percent from June 2006 when the median was $229,300.  The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.

Single-family home sales fell 3.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.01 million in June (from a downwardly revised 5.19 million in May) and are 12.1 percent below the 5.70 million-unit level in June 2006.  The median existing single-family home price was $230,300 in June, up 0.1 percent from June 2006.

Existing condominium and co-op sales dropped 6.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 740,000 units in June from 790,000 in May, and are 6.6 percent lower than the 792,000-unit pace in June 2006.  The median existing condo price was $228,900 in June, up 2.6 percent from the previous year.

NAR President Pat V. Combs believes local market conditions vary widely.  “Consumers should avoid making decisions based on what they hear about the national market because all real estate is local,” she said.

Existing-home sales in the Northeast fell 7.3 percent to a level of 1.01 million in June, and are 7.3 percent lower than June 2006.  The median existing-home price in the Northeast was $294,400, up 1.8 percent from a year ago.