Total existing-home sales decreased 3.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.04 million in April from an upwardly revised 5.21 million in March, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Despite the monthly decline, sales have increased year-over-year for seven consecutive months and remain 6.1 percent higher than one year ago.
April failed to continue the pace set in March because inventory is lagging behind demand, causing upward pressure on pricing, said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, in a statement.
The median existing-home price in April was $219,400, which is 8.9 percent higher than in April 2014 and the largest year-over-year price gain since January 2014.
“Housing inventory declined from last year and supply in many markets is very tight, which in turn is leading to bidding wars, faster price growth and properties selling at a quicker pace,” Yun said. “To put it in perspective, roughly 40 percent of properties sold last month went at or above asking price, the highest since NAR began tracking this monthly data in December 2012.”
