(RTTNews) - Existing home sales in the U.S. snapped a four-month skid in July, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday, with sales rebounding by slightly more than expected.
NAR said existing home sales shot up by 1.3 percent to an annual rate of 3.95 million in July after plunging by 5.1 percent to a revised rate of 3.90 million in June.
Economists had expected existing home sales to jump by 1.0 percent to an annual rate of 3.93 million from the 3.89 million originally reported for the previous month.
"Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates."
The report said the median existing home price fell by 1.0 percent to $422,600 in July from $426,900 in June but is still up by 4.2 percent compared to $405,600 in the same month a year ago.
Meanwhile, housing inventory at the end of July totaled 1.33 million units, up 0.8 percent from 1.32 million units in June and up 19.8 percent from 1.11 million units in July 2023.
The unsold inventory represents 4.0 months of supply at the current sales pace, down from 4.1 months in June but up from 3.3 months a year ago.
NAR also said single-family home sales jumped by 1.4 percent to an annual rate of 3.57 million in July, while existing condominium and co-op sales were unchanged from the previous month at an annual rate of 380,000.
On Friday, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release a separate report on new home sales in the month of July.
New home sales are expected to surge by 2.1 percent to an annual rate of 630,000 in July after falling by 0.6 percent to a rate of 617,000 in June.
