Existing home sales in the United States decreased by 4.9% in January compared to the previous month, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.08 million, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shared in a report on Friday. On an annual level, the sales advanced by 2%.
The median existing-home sales price climbed by 4.8% from January 2024 to $396,900, marking the 19th consecutive year-over-year growth. Total housing inventory at the end of January landed at 1.18 million units, rising by 3.5% month-on-month and 16.8% year-on-year.
Mortgage rates have refused to budge for several months despite multiple rounds of short-term interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve," NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun commented. "When combined with elevated home prices, housing affordability remains a major challenge," he added.
