U.S. Existing Home Sales Post Record Rebound in June; Prices Strengthen

• Existing home sales rise to highest level in three months.

• Sales increases are broad-based across the nation.

• Prices strengthen.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that sales of existing homes jumped 20.7% (-11.3% y/y) during June to 4.720 million units (AR) after falling to an unrevised 3.910 million in May. It was the highest level of sales since March. The Action Economics Forecast Survey expected June sales of 4.82 million. Existing home sales data are compiled when sales close. The total includes single-family houses plus condos and co-ops.

Sales of existing single-family homes jumped a record 19.9% (-9.9% y/y) to 4.280 million units. The series dates back to January 1968. Sales of condos and co-ops strengthened 29.4% (-22.8% y/y) to 440,000 units.

The median price of an existing home increased 4.1% (3.5% y/y) to $295,300 after a 1.1% May decline. The mean sales price improved 3.8% last month (2.6% y/y) to $329,900. The median home price in the Northeast rose 1.5% (3.6% y/y) to $332,900. In the Midwest, prices rose 4.3% (3.2% y/y) to $236,900. The median home price in the South strengthened 5.7% (4.4% y/y) to $258,500 while prices in the West rebounded 6.2% (5.4% y/y) to $432,600. The price data are not seasonally adjusted.

Sales in all four regions of the country increased last month. In the West, sales strengthened 31.9% to 950,000 (-13.6% y/y) after falling sharply for three consecutive months. Sales in the South recovered 26.0% (-4.0% y/y) to 2.180 million units, also after three consecutive monthly declines. In the Northeast, sales improved 4.3% (-27.9% y/y) to 490,000 after declining for four straight months. Sales recovered 11.1% (-13.4% y/y) in the Midwest to 1.100 million units after three months of decline.

The number of homes on the market declined 18.2% y/y. The months' supply of homes on the market fell sharply to a still-high 4.0 from 4.8 in May.

The data on existing home sales, prices and affordability are compiled by the National Association of Realtors. The data trace back to February 1968. Total sales and price data and regional sales can be found in Haver's USECON database. Regional price and affordability data and national inventory data are available in the REALTOR database. The expectations figure is from the Action Economics Forecast Survey, reported in the AS1REPNA database.