Existing-Home Sales Dip in December

(Illustration courtesy of the National Association of Realtors)

Existing-home sales dipped 1.0% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.78 million, the National Association of Realtors reported Friday.

Sales of existing homes fell 6.2% from the previous year, NAR said. The median existing-home sales price rose 4.4% from December 2022 to $382,600 – the sixth consecutive month of year-over-year price increases.

On an annual basis, existing-home sales of 4.09 million fell to the lowest level in nearly 30 years, while the median price reached a record high $389,800 in 2023.

“The latest month’s sales look to be the bottom before inevitably turning higher in the new year,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said. “Mortgage rates are meaningfully lower compared to just two months ago, and more inventory is expected to appear on the market in upcoming months.”

A&D Mortgage CEO Max Slyusarchuk noted that home sales remain flat but said the trend won’t continue for long. “In fact, with interest rates expected to ease through 2024, we believe home sales may increase by nearly a million homes a month by the end of the year,” he said. “But while that sounds impressive, a full housing recovery where supply and demand are in balance remains years away.”

NAR said the inventory of unsold existing homes slumped 11.5% from the previous month to 1 million at the end of December, or the equivalent of 3.2 months’ supply at the current monthly sales pace.