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Existing Home Sales Rebound in October

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Existing home sales in October rebounded from a 14-year low and posted the first annual increase in more than three years, as buyers took advantage when mortgage rates briefly reached a 2-year low in late September, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). While elevated home prices persist due to the lock-in effect, we expect sales activity to increase as mortgage rates moderate with additional Fed easing. Improving inventory should help slow home price growth and enhance affordability.

Homeowners with lower mortgage rates have opted to stay put, avoiding trading existing mortgages for new ones with higher rates. This trend is driving home prices higher and holding back inventory. With the Federal Reserve beginning its easing cycle at the September meeting, mortgage rates are expected to gradually decrease, leading to increased demand and unlocking lock-in inventory in the coming quarters. Total existing home sales, including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, rose 3.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.96 million in October. On a year-over-year basis, sales were 2.9% higher than a year ago, ending a 38-month streak of year-over-year declines since July 2021.

The first-time buyer share rose to 27% in October, up from 26% in September but down from 28% in October 2023.

The existing home inventory level rose from 1.36 million in September to 1.37 million units in October and is up 19.1% from a year ago. At the current sales rate, September unsold inventory sits at a 4.2-months supply, down from 4.3-months last month but up 3.6-months a year ago. This inventory level remains low compared to balanced market conditions (4.5 to 6 months’ supply) and illustrates the long-run need for more home construction.

Homes stayed on the market for an average of 29 days in October, up from 28 days in September and 23 days in October 2023.

The October all-cash sales share was 27% of transactions, down from 30% in September and 29% a year ago. All-cash buyers are less affected by changes in interest rates.

The October median sales price of all existing homes was $407,200, up 4.0% from last year. This marked the 16th consecutive month of year-over-year increases. The median condominium/co-op price in October was up 1.6% from a year ago at $360,300. This rate of price growth will slow as inventory increases.

Geographically, all four regions saw an increase in existing home sales in October, ranging from 1.3% in the West to 6.7% in the Midwest. On a year-over-year basis, sales rose 1.1%, 2.3%, and 8.5% in the Midwest, South and West. Sales in the Northeast stayed unchanged.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts. The PHSI rose from 70.6 to 75.8 in September due to improved inventory and lower mortgage rates in late summer. On a year-over-year basis, pending sales were 2.6% higher than a year ago per National Association of Realtors data.

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Existing Home Sales Fall to 14-Year Low in September

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Despite recent easing mortgage rates and improved inventory, existing home sales fell to a 14-year low in September as elevated home prices are causing potential buyers to hold out for lower rates, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Sales remained sluggish as the lock-in effect kept home prices elevated. However, we expect increased activity in the coming months as mortgage rates moderate with additional Fed easing. Improving inventory should help slow home price growth and enhance affordability.

Homeowners with lower mortgage rates have opted to stay put, avoiding trading existing mortgages for new ones with higher rates. This trend is driving home prices higher and holding back inventory. With the Federal Reserve beginning its easing cycle at the September meeting, mortgage rates are expected to gradually decrease, leading to increased demand and unlocking lock-in inventory in the coming quarters.

Total existing home sales, including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, fell 1.0% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.84 million in September, the lowest level since October 2010. On a year-over-year basis, sales were 3.5% lower than a year ago.

The first-time buyer share remained at 26% in September, matching the lowest level since November 2021 and August 2024, but down from 27% in September 2023.

The existing home inventory level rose from 1.37 million in August to 1.39 million units in September and is up 23.0% from a year ago. At the current sales rate, September unsold inventory sits at a 4.3-months supply, up from 4.2-months last month and 3.4-months a year ago. This inventory level remains low compared to balanced market conditions (4.5 to 6 months’ supply) and illustrates the long-run need for more home construction. However, the count of single-family resale homes available for sale is up almost 22.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Homes stayed on the market for an average of 28 days in September, up from 26 days in August and 21 days in September 2023.

The September all-cash sales share was 30% of transactions, up from 26% in August and 29% a year ago. All-cash buyers are less affected by changes in interest rates.

The September median sales price of all existing homes was $404,500, up 3.0% from last year. This marked the 15th consecutive month of year-over-year increases and the highest level for the month of September. The median condominium/co-op price in September was up 2.2% from a year ago at $361,600. This rate of price growth will slow as inventory increases.

Existing home sales in September were mixed across the four major regions. In the Northeast, Midwest, and South, sales fell by 4.2%, 2.2%, and 1.7%, respectively, while sales in the Midwest rose by 4.1%. On a year-over-year basis, sales decreased in the Northeast (-6.1%), Midwest (-5.3%) and South (-5.5%). Sales in the West increased 5.6% from a year ago.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts. The PHSI rose from 70.2 to 70.6 in August due to lower mortgage rates. On a year-over-year basis, pending sales were 3.0% lower than a year ago per National Association of Realtors data.

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Existing Home Sales Slide Despite Lower Mortgage Rates

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Existing home sales fell to a 10-month low in August despite easing mortgage rates and improved inventory, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Home sales remained sluggish as the lock-in effect kept home prices elevated. Meanwhile, the share of first-time buyer in August dropped to a record low. However, we expect increased activity in the coming months as mortgage rates continue to moderate. Improving inventory is likely to ease home price growth and enhance affordability.

Homeowners with lower mortgage rates have opted to stay put, avoiding trading existing mortgages for new ones with higher rates. This trend is driving home prices higher and holding back inventory. With the Federal Reserve beginning its easing cycle at the September meeting, mortgage rates are expected to gradually decrease, leading to increased demand and unlocking lock-in inventory in the coming quarters.

Total existing home sales, including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, fell 2.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.86 million in August, the lowest level since October 2023. On a year-over-year basis, sales were 4.2% lower than a year ago.

The first-time buyer share dropped to 26% in August, the lowest level since November 2021, down from 29% in both July and August 2023.

The existing home inventory level rose from 1.34 million in July to 1.35 million units in August and is up 22.7% from a year ago. At the current sales rate, August unsold inventory sits at a 4.2-months supply, up from 4.1-months last month and 3.3-months a year ago. This inventory level remains low compared to balanced market conditions (4.5 to 6 months’ supply) and illustrates the long-run need for more home construction. However, the count of single-family resale homes available for sale is up almost 21.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Homes stayed on the market for an average of 26 days in August, up from 24 days in July and 20 days in August 2023.

The August all-cash sales share was 26% of transactions, down from 27% in both July and a year ago. All-cash buyers are less affected by changes in interest rates.

The August median sales price of all existing homes was $416,700, up 3.1% from last year. This marked the 14th consecutive month of year-over-year increases. The median condominium/co-op price in August was up 3.5% from a year ago at $366,500. This rate of price growth will slow as inventory increases. Existing home sales in August were mixed across the four major regions. In the Northeast, South, and West, sales fell by 2.0%, 3.9%, and 2.7%, respectively, while sales in the Midwest remained unchanged. On a year-over-year basis, sales decreased in the Midwest (-5.2%), South (-6.0%) and West (-1.4%). Sales in the Northeast were unchanged from a year ago.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts. The PHSI fell from 74.3 to 70.2 in July due to persistent affordability challenges. On a year-over-year basis, pending sales were 8.5% lower than a year ago per National Association of Realtors data.

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This article was originally published by a eyeonhousing.org . Read the Original article here. .

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Existing Home Sales Edge Higher in July

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Existing home sales increased for the first time in five months, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), as improving inventory and declining mortgage rates motivated some buyers to act. Despite these changes, sales remained sluggish and low inventory continued to push up median home prices. However, we expect increased activity in the coming months as mortgage rates continue to moderate. Improving inventory is likely to ease home price growth and enhance affordability.

Homeowners with lower mortgage rates have opted to stay put, avoiding trading existing mortgages for new ones with higher rates. This trend is driving home prices higher and holding back inventory. Mortgage rates are expected to continue to decrease gradually, leading to increased demand (and unlocking lock-in inventory) in the coming quarters. However, that decline is dependent on future inflation and job reports, and especially possible easing by the Federal Reserve.

Total existing home sales, including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, rose 1.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million in July. This marks the first increase after four months of declines. On a year-over-year basis, sales were still 2.5% lower than a year ago.

The first-time buyer share stayed at 29% in July, identical to June but down from 30% in July 2023. The inventory level rose from 1.32 million in June to 1.33 million units in July and is up 19.8% from a year ago.

At the current sales rate, July unsold inventory sits at a 4.0-months supply, down from 4.1-months last month but up from 3.3-months a year ago. This inventory level remains low compared to balanced market conditions (4.5 to 6 months’ supply) and illustrates the long-run need for more home construction. However, the count of single-family resale homes available for sale is up almost 19.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Homes stayed on the market for an average of 24 days in July, up from 22 days in June and 20 days in July 2023.

The July all-cash sales share was 27% of transactions, down from 28% in June but up from 26% a year ago. All-cash buyers are less affected by changes in interest rates.

The July median sales price of all existing homes was $422,600, up 4.2% from last year. This marked the 13th consecutive month of year-over-year increases. The median condominium/co-op price in July was up 2.7% from a year ago at $367,500. This rate of price growth will slow as inventory increases.

Existing home sales in July were mixed across the four major regions. In the Northeast, South, and West, sales increased by 4.3%, 1.1%, and 1.4%, respectively, while sales in the Midwest remained unchanged. On a year-over-year basis, sales rose in the Northeast (2.1%) and West (1.4%) but fell in the Midwest (-5.2%) and South (-3.8%).

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts. The PHSI rose from 70.9 to 74.3 in June as inventory improved. On a year-over-year basis, pending sales were 2.6% lower than a year ago per NAR data.

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Median Priced Existing Homes Less Affordable Than New Homes in Second Quarter

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NAHB’s Cost of Housing Index (CHI) highlights the burden that housing costs represent for middle and low-income families. In the second quarter of 2024, the CHI found that a family earning the nation’s median income of $97,800 must spend 38% of its income to cover the mortgage payment on a median-priced new single-family home. Because a typical existing home in the second quarter was more expensive ($422,100) than a typical newly built home ($412,300), the CHI for existing homes was higher, at 39%. 

Low-income families, defined as those earning only 50% of median income, would have to spend 77% of their earnings to pay for a new home and 79% for an existing one.

The latest results reveal that affordability has worsened for existing homes. A typical family needed 39% of its income to pay for a median-priced existing home in the second quarter, up from 36% in the first quarter. A low-income family needed 79% of its income vs. 71% in the previous quarter. In contrast, the CHI and low-income CHI for new homes remained unchanged between the first and second quarters of 2024, at 38% and 77%, respectively.

Additionally, CHI is produced for existing homes in 176 metropolitan areas, breaking down the percentage of a family’s income needed to make a mortgage payment in each area based on the local median existing home price and median income. Percentages are also calculated for low-income families in these markets.

In 14 out of 176 markets in the second quarter, the typical family is severely cost-burdened (must pay more than 50% of their income on a median-priced existing home).  In 89 other markets, such families are cost-burdened (need to pay between 31% and 50%). There are 73 markets where the CHI is 30% of earnings or lower.

The Top Five Severely Cost-Burdened Markets

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif. was the most severely cost-burdened market on the CHI during the second quarter, where 94% of a typical family’s income is needed to make a mortgage payment on an existing home. This was followed by:

• San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, Calif. (79%)
• San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, Calif. (76%)
• Urban Honolulu, Hawaii (76%)
• Naples-Marco Island, Fla. (74%)

Low-income families would have to pay between 147% and 188% of their income in all five of the above markets to cover a mortgage.

The Top Five Least Cost-Burdened Markets

By contrast, Decatur, Ill., was the least cost-burdened market on the CHI, where families needed to spend just 15% of their income to pay for a mortgage on an existing home. Rounding out the least burdened markets are:

• Cumberland, Md.-W.Va. (17%)
• Springfield, Ill. (18%)
• Elmira, N.Y. (18%)
• Peoria, Ill. (19%)
• Binghamton, N.Y. (tied at 19%)

Low-income families in these markets would have to pay between 30% and 39% of their income to cover the mortgage payment for a median priced existing home.

Visit nahb.org/chi for tables and details.

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