March existing-home sales were at their highest annual rate in 18 months after a 6.1 percent increase increased sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.19 million, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Sales have increased year-over-year for six consecutive months and are 10.4 percent above a year ago. Sales increased 6.2 percent between February and March, the largest monthly increase since December 2010.
“After a quiet start to the year, sales activity picked up greatly throughout the country in March,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, in a statement. “The combination of low interest rates and the ongoing stability in the job market is improving buyer confidence and finally releasing some of the sizable pent-up demand that accumulated in recent years.”
Regionally, the Midwest saw the largest increase (10.1 percent) in existing-home sales in March for a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.2 million.
Northeast existing-home sales increased 6.9 percent to an annual rate of 620,000. In the South, sales climbed 3.8 percent to a rate of 2.19 million and sales in the West jumped 6.3 percent to a rate of 1.18 million.
The median existing-home price across the nation in March was $212,000, a 7.8 percent increase from March 2014.
