The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports that existing-home sales increased in February. Two major U.S. regions saw a rise in monthly and year-over-year sales, while one region stayed the same and the other saw a fall.
Completed transactions involving single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and cooperatives make up the total existing-home sales, which increased 4.2% from January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.26 million in February. Sales decreased 1.2% year-over-year (from 4.31 million in February 2024).
“Home buyers are slowly entering the market,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Mortgage rates have not changed much, but more inventory and choices are releasing pent-up housing demand.”
At the end of February, there were 1.24 million units in total housing inventory, up 5.1% from January and 17% from the same month last year (1.06 million). At the current sales pace, unsold inventory is at a 3.5-month supply, which is the same as January and higher than the 3.0 months in February 2024.
“On a technical note, raw sales in February were down 5.2% from last year, which was a leap year with one extra day of business,” Yun said. “However, after adjusting for this effect, combined with the winter seasonal factors, the momentum for home sales is flashing encouraging signs.”
All property types combined had a median existing-home price3 of $398,400 in February, up 3.8% from $383,800 a year earlier. Price rises were observed in all four U.S. regions.
“Each one percentage point gain in home price translates into an approximately $350 billion increase in housing equity for American property owners,” Yun said. “That means a gain of nearly $1.3 trillion in home value appreciation at a time when the current stock market is undergoing a correction. Moreover, the ongoing housing shortage, coupled with historically low mortgage default rates, implies a solid foundation for home values.”
To read the full report, click here.
