Global| Jun 27 2006U.S. Existing Home Sales Decline As Expected
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Total existing home sales fell 1.2% during May to 6.670M following a little revised 2.2% decline during April. Consensus expectations had been for sales of 6.62M and the figures were reported by the National Association of Realtors. [...]
Sales were weakest last month in the Northeast which posted a 4.8% drop (-5.9% y/y) and in the Midwest where they fell 4.3% (-5.6% y/y). In the South (-2.8% y/y) and in the West (-14.1% y/y), May sales were unchanged from the prior month.
The median price of an existing single-family home rose 3.2% (6.4% y/y). The price figures are not seasonally adjusted.
The inventory of unsold existing homes rose 5.5% and was up 41.0% from one year earlier. The supply of unsold single family homes was up 36.3% y/y and the supply of condos & coops for sale was up 73.0%.
The latest release from the National Association of Realtors is available here.
| Existing Home Sales (000, AR) | May | April | Y/Y | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Home Sales | 6,670 | 6,750 | -6.6% | 7,064 | 6,722 | 6,176 |
| Single Family Home Sales | 5,820 | 5,910 | -6.6% | 6,170 | 5,912 | 5,443 |
| Single Family Median Home Price (000) | $229.7 | $222.6 | 6.4% | $206.3 | $182.8 | $169.1 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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