U.S. existing-home sales fall to three-month low, while prices retreat

Sales of previously owned U.S. homes fell to a three-month low in April, restrained by limited inventory and ongoing affordability concerns.

Contract closings decreased 3.4% last month to an annualized pace of 4.28 million, according to data released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors. The figure was in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

The median selling price fell from a year earlier by the most since 2012, to $388,800. The 1.7% retreat was due to decreases in the West, the most expensive region, and the South.

“Home sales are bouncing back and forth but remain above recent cyclical lows,” Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said in a statement. “The combination of job gains, limited inventory and fluctuating mortgage rates over the last several months have created an environment of push-pull housing demand.”

While inventory picked up amid the spring selling season, elevated borrowing costs paired with limited listings are restraining sales. With mortgage rates about twice as high as they were at the end of 2021, many sellers are still reluctant to list their houses and some buyers are sidelined.

The number of homes for sale increased to 1.04 million, up 1% from a year ago. Still, inventory was nearly double that in April 2019. At the current sales pace, it would take 2.9 months to sell all the properties on the market. Realtors see anything below five months of supply as indicative of a tight market.

“Even in markets with lower prices, primarily the expensive West region, multiple-offer situations have returned in the spring buying season,” Yun said.

There are signs the housing market is beginning to stabilize. Home builder sentiment has been on the rise for the past five months as more buyers look to new construction in the low-inventory environment. Separate data this week showed single-family housing starts climbed to a four-month high in April.

Still, elevated borrowing costs remain a key hurdle for many prospective buyers. Separate data out Wednesday showed mortgage rates rose to a two-month high last week.

And while some Federal Reserve officials have indicated they may pause their tightening campaign as soon as next month, how long rates will remain elevated is unclear.

Nearly three-fourths of homes sold were on the market for less than a month. Properties remained on the market for 22 days on average in April, down from 29 days in March.

Sales of single-family homes slid to an annualized 3.85 million pace. Existing-condominium and co-op sales also edged lower.

Existing-home sales typically account for the vast majority of U.S. housing and are calculated when a contract closes. Data on new-home sales, which make up the remainder, are based on contract signings, will be released next week.