US existing home sales retreat more than expected in March

(FILES) A for sale sign is displayed outside of a home for sale on August 16, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP)

WASHINGTON, United States — Sales of existing US homes pulled back more than expected in March, according to industry data released Thursday, as mortgage rates remained high and weighed on affordability for homebuyers.

Existing home sales slid 5.9 percent last month from February to an annual rate of 4.02 million, seasonally adjusted, said the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

This was significantly below a 4.2 million rate expected in a consensus estimate by Briefing.com.

“Home buying and selling remained sluggish in March due to the affordability challenges associated with high mortgage rates,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun in a statement.

The popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hovered around 6.7 percent as of mid-March, similar to levels for the same period last year.

Yun warned that residential housing mobility is “at historical lows,” signaling the “troublesome possibility of less economic mobility for society.”

With mortgage rates elevated in recent times, current homeowners have been reluctant to enter the property market — after having locked in lower rates previously.

From a year ago, existing home sales were down by 2.4 percent, the NAR said.

The median price of previously-owned homes across housing types in March was up 2.7 percent from a year ago at $403,700 — and all four US regions logged price hikes.

Inventory jumped by 8.1 percent from February as of end-March, the NAR said, but Yun told reporters that the volume of units appears to still be “lagging.”

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