Existing-Home Sales Rise After 5Months of Declines

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NAR released a summary of existing home sales data showing that November's housing market activity increased by 0.8% from October 2023. November’s existing home sales reached a 3.80 million seasonally adjusted annual rate. November’s sales of existing homes weakened 7.3% from November 2022.

The national median existing home price for all housing types reached $387,600 in November, up 4.0% from a year ago.

Regionally, in November, all four regions showed price growth from a year ago. The West had the largest gain of 5.3%, followed by the Midwest with an increase of 4.9%. The Northeast increased by 4.8%, while the South region rose by 3.4%.

November’s inventory of unsold listings as of the end of the month was down 1.7% from last month, standing at 1,130,000 homes for sale. Compared with November of 2022, inventory levels were up 0.9%. It will take 2.8 months to move the current inventory level at the current sales pace, well below the desired pace of 6 months. Inventory conditions continue to be a challenge for potential home buyers.  

It takes approximately 25 days for a home to go from listing to a contract in the current housing market. A year ago, it took 24 days. 

From a year ago, all four regions had declines in sales in November. The Northeast had the biggest dip of 13.0%, followed by the Midwest, which fell 8.7%. The West decreased 8.6%, followed by the South, which was down 4.3%.   

Compared to October 2023, two of the four regions showed increased sales. The South had the biggest gain of 4.7% followed by the Midwest with an incline of 1.1%. The West region had the biggest decline in sales of 7.2% followed by the Northeast with the smallest dip of 2.1%.

The South led all regions in percentage of national sales, accounting for 46.3% of the total, while the Northeast had the smallest share at 12.3%.

In November, single-family sales decreased 0.9%, and condominium sales were flat compared to last month. Single-family home sales were down 7.3%, while condominium sales fell 6.8% compared to a year ago. The median sales price of single-family homes rose 3.5% at $392,100 from November 2022, while the median sales price of condominiums inclined 8.6% at $350,100.