Existing home sales increased in every region in January, surging 6.7% from December to an adjusted rate of 6.50 million, the National Association of Realtors reported. Compared with January 2021, existing home sales declined 2.3%.
Inventory of existing homes at the end of January was 860,000, an all-time low and a 16.5% drop from January 2021. Unsold inventory was at a 1.6-month supply at the current sales pace.
“The inventory of homes on the market remains woefully depleted,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “There are more listings at the upper end—homes priced above $500,000—compared to a year ago, which should lead to less hurried decisions by some buyers,” Yun added. “Clearly, more supply is needed at the lower -end of the market in order to achieve more equitable distribution of housing wealth.”
The median existing home price was $350,300, a 15.4% surge from January 2021, with prices increasing in every region.
Regionally, existing home sales increased 6.8% in the Northeast, 4.1% in the Midwest, 9.3% in the South and 4.1% in the West.
The full NAR report can be found here.
