A slight easing of mortgage rates led to an uptick in the sale of existing homes in October, along with a modest decrease in unsold inventory, but median sales prices continued to rise.
Existing-home sales in October jumped by 1.2 percent from September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.1 million units—an eight‑month high, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Year over year, sales were up by 1.7 percent.
Sales were strongest in the Midwest and South, the NAR said, but they tapered off in the western region due to higher home prices. The slight increase in home sales for the month was correlated to a modest easing of mortgage rates, noted Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR….