US existing home sales rise to 1-year high

​​​​​​​By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US existing home sales rose 4.2% in February, compared to the previous month, rising to its highest since last February, according to a report Thursday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Existing home sales, which measure the change in the number of existing residential buildings sold, grew to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.26 million in February.

The figure was higher than estimates of 3.95 million, while the January figure was slightly revised to 4.09 million from 4.08 million.

"Home buyers are slowly entering the market," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "Mortgage rates have not changed much, but more inventory and choices are releasing pent-up housing demand."

The median existing home sales price rose 3.8% annually to $398,400, with all four US regions registering price increases.

"Each one percentage point gain in home price translates into an approximately $350 billion increase in housing equity for American property owners," Yun noted.

Existing home sales were down 1.2% from 4.31 million in February 2024.