February Sees Strong Surge in U.S. Existing Home Sales

In February, sales of previously owned U.S. homes surged, marking the strongest pace in a year as homebuyers were encouraged by a slight dip in mortgage rates and an increase in available properties. The National Association of Realtors reported a 9.5% increase in existing home sales from January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.38 million, surpassing economists’ expectations. Despite this uptick in sales, year-over-year sales still decreased by 3.3%.

The pickup in sales helped push up home prices compared with a year earlier for the eighth month in a row. The national median sales price climbed 5.7% from a year earlier to $384,500, the highest median sales price for February on records going back to 1999. While the supply of homes on the market remains below the historical average, the typical increase in homes for sale that happens ahead of the spring homebuying season gave homebuyers a wider selection of properties to choose from.

At the end of last month, there were 1.07 million unsold homes on the market, a 5.9% increase from January and up 10.3% from a year earlier. That’s the highest inventory of homes for sale for February since 2020, the NAR said. Even so, the available inventory at the end of last month amounted to a 2.9-month supply, going by the current sales pace. That’s down from a 3-month supply in January, but up from a 2.6-month pace in February last year. In a more balanced market between buyers and sellers, there is a 4- to 6-month supply.