Existing-home sales in July were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.44 million, the lowest rate of 2017, down 1.3 percent from June’s 5.51 million but up 2.1 percent year-over-year, according to the National Association of Realtors.
“Buyer interest in most of the country has held up strongly this summer and homes are selling fast, but the negative effect of not enough inventory to choose from and its pressure on overall affordability put the brakes on what should’ve been a higher sales pace,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Contract activity has mostly trended downward since February and ultimately put a large dent on closings last month.”
The median existing-home price in July was $258,300, up 6.2 percent from July 2016’s $243,200 and the 65th straight month over year-over-year increases.
Existing-home sales in the Northeast fell 14.5 percent to an annual rate of 650,000. Sales in the Midwest fell 5.3 percent to 1.25 million. In the South, sales grew 2.2 percent to 2.28 million. Sales in the West increased 5 percent to 1.26 million.
