Slow But Steady: Existing Home Sales and Prices Rise

• May 22, 2012

by Shilpi Paul

The National Association of Realtors announced today that existing home sales and prices rose in April, indicating a continued steady and slow recovery of the housing market.

Nationally, the total number of existing home sales was 10 percent higher last month than in April 2011, and 3.4 percent higher, seasonally adjusted, than in March. Year-over-year, the national median home price jumped 10.1 percent to $177,400.

From NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun:

“It is no longer just the investors who are taking advantage of high affordability conditions. A return of normal home buying for occupancy is helping home sales across all price points, and now the recovery appears to be extending to home prices. The general downtrend in both listed and shadow inventory has shifted from a buyers’ market to one that is much more balanced, but in some areas it has become a seller’s market.”

Home prices have risen as available inventory has dropped by 20.6 percent since last year. Yun mentioned DC as having a particularly tight housing market, where homes receive multiple bids and see escalating prices. (As if you didn’t know that already.)

Unlike the pending sales index, which measures homes that have gone under contract but not yet closed, existing home sales consist of completed transactions from multiple listing services that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/slow_but_steady_existing_home_sales_rise/5567