A report from the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) shows a decline in total existing home sales for October. Sales dipped in the Northeast, West, and South but held steady in the Midwest. All four regions saw annual sales declines.
October’s total existing home sales—including single-family homes, condos, townhomes, and co-ops—dropped 4.1% month over month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.79 million.
Year over year, existing home sales fell 14.6% (from 4.44 million in October 2022).
Prospective home buyers experienced another difficult month due to the persistent lack of housing inventory and the highest mortgage rates in a generation. Multiple offers, however, are still occurring, especially on starter and mid-priced homes, even as price concessions are happening in the upper end of the market.
Lawrence Yun
NAR Chief Economist
MONTHLY UPTICK IN INVENTORY AND ANNUAL INCREASE IN MEDIAN HOME SALE PRICES
At the end of October, total housing inventory reached 1.15 million units—up 1.8% from the previous month but down 5.7% from October 2022 (1.22 million).
Unsold inventory increased to a 3.6-month supply at the current monthly sales pace—up from 3.4 months in September and from 3.3 months in October 2022.
The median existing home price in October—for all housing types—rose 3.4% from October 2022 ($378,000) to $391,800. All four U.S. regions registered median home price increases.
While circumstances for buyers remain tight, home sellers have done well as prices continue to rise year-over-year, including a new all-time high for the month of October. In fact, a typical homeowner has accumulated more than $100,000 in housing wealth over the past three years.
Lawrence Yun
NAR Chief Economist
MONTHLY AND ANNUAL STATS FOR HOME SALES
Nearly two-thirds (66%) of homes sold in October spent less than a month on the market.
Other home sales highlights for October 2023:
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First-time homebuyers accounted for 28% of home sales—up from 27% the previous month and identical to October 2022.
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The annual share of first-time buyers was 32%, according to NAR’s 2023 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (released on November 13).
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All-cash sales accounted for over a quarter (29%) of October transactions—identical to the previous month but up from 26% in October 2022.
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Individual investors or second-home buyers, responsible for many of those all-cash sales, bought 15% of the homes sold in October—down from 18% the previous month and 16% one year ago.
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Distressed sales—i.e. foreclosures and short sales—accounted for 2% of home sales in October—unchanged from September and from a year ago.
MORTGAGE RATES ARE DOWN MONTH-OVER-MONTH—BUT STILL UP FROM A YEAR AGO
As of November 16, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate, according to Freddie Mac, averaged 7.44%—down from 7.50% the week before but up from 6.61% one year ago. Today’s rate (November 22) is down to 7.33...
