US housing market sees another month of rising prices but declining sales figures
U.S. existing home sales posted a 16th straight month of year-over-year declines in June, but there was at least one nugget of good news for sellers.
Those who are able to sell their homes are getting more for them, as the median nationwide sale price reached an all-time high, according to a new National Association of Realtors report cited in the Wall Street Journal.
The number of sales in June declined 2.2 percent, year-over-year, and 1.7 percent from the previous month, puzzling economists who see an attractive market thanks to low unemployment, rising wages and lower mortgage rates.
“It doesn’t make economic sense,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR, told the Journal.
Rising prices — up 4.3 percent, year-over-year, to a record nationwide median of $285,700 — combined with low inventory likely dampened buyers’ enthusiasm. June’s price growth marked 88 consecutive months of year-over-year increases. [WSJ] — John O’Brien
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