Home sales fell in April despite a big drop in mortgage rates

  • A sizable drop in mortgage interest rates didn’t do much to help home sales in April, as high prices and tight supply at the low end of the market continued to sideline buyers.
  • Sales of existing U.S. homes fell 0.4% in April compared with March to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.19 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 4.4% lower compared with April 2018.
  • That was the 14th  straight month of annual declines.

A sizable drop in mortgage interest rates didn’t do much to help home sales in April, as high prices and tight supply at the low end of the market continued to sideline buyers.

Sales of existing U.S. homes fell 0.4% in April compared with March to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.19 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 4.4% lower compared with April 2018. That was the 14th straight month of annual declines.

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Existing sales make up about 90% of the total sales market, as new construction continues to lag historically normal levels of production. The NAR’s reading counts closed sales, so it reflects buyers out signing contracts in February and March. The average rate on the 30-year fixed dropped sharply in March, so the expectation had been for a gain in sales, but the Realtors’ chief economist said he is not concerned.

www.cnbc.com/2019/05/21/home-sales-fell-in-april-despite-a-big-drop-in-mortgage-rates.html

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