US existing home sales decline 1.9% in April

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US existing home sales declined 1.9% in April, according to data released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Existing home sales, which measure the change in the number of existing residential buildings sold, decreased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.14 million in April.

The figure was lower than estimates of 4.21 million, while the March figure stood at 4.19 million for a monthly decline of 4.19 million.

NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement that "the upper-end market is experiencing a sizable gain due to more supply coming onto the market."

On an annual basis, existing home sales also decreased 1.9%, down from 4.22 million recorded in April 2023.

The median existing home sales price annually climbed 5.7% to $407,600 last month, from April last year when they stood at $385,800.

"Home prices reaching a record high for the month of April is very good news for homeowners," said Yun. "However, the pace of price increases should taper off since more housing inventory is becoming available.”