Nation's Building News Online

Existing-Home Sales Soften in October, But Still Near Record

Sales of existing single-family homes appear to have reached their peak, with a 4.9% decline in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.35 million units, which was the third highest pace on record following a record high in September.

“We think this marks the beginning of a soft landing for sky-high home sales,” said David Lereah, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors®.

“The last four months are the only months on record when the existing-home sales pace exceeded the 6-million mark,” he said “We expect the pace to ease gradually but to remain at historically high levels over the next year.”

NAR President Walt McDonald, broker-owner of Walt McDonald Real Estate in Riverside, CA, said that housing demand is continuing to outstrip supply.

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“Although the supply of homes on the market saw some improvement at the end of October, inventories are still quite lean,” he said. “With low interest rates continuing to fuel demand, the housing market generally favors sellers in most of the country and home prices continue to rise faster than historic averages.”

The national median existing-home price was $172,400 in October, up 8.2% from the same month a year earlier.

Sales slipped 2.7% in the Northeast and South, 4.9% in the Midwest and 9.2% in the West.
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