Existing-home sales rose 12.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.28 million in December from 4.70 million the previous month, but they were 2.9 percent below the 5.44 million pace in December 2009, NAR reported this morning.
NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun says the sales pattern over the past six months indicates a recovery in the housing market. “The December pace is near the volume we’re expecting for 2011, so the market is getting much closer to an adequate, sustainable level. The recovery will likely continue as job growth gains momentum and rising rents encourage more renters into ownership while exceptional affordability conditions remain,” Yun says.
Rising December sales were fueled by falling home prices and increasing sales of distressed properties. The national median sale price of an existing home was $168,800 in December, 1.0 percent below December 2009. Total housing inventory fell 4.2 percent to 3.56 million existing homes available for sale, representing an 8.1-month supply at the current sales pace, down from 9.5 months in November.
Distressed sales accounted for 36 percent of all existing-home sales in December, up from 33 percent in November. First-time buyers purchased 33 percent of the homes sold in December, down from 43 percent a year ago, while investors accounted for 20 percent of sales, up from 15 percent in December 2009.
Existing-home sales rose in all four regions of the country. In the Northeast, they jumped 13.0 percent to 870,000 in December, but were 5.4 percent below a year ago. The median sale price in the Northeast was $237,300, 1.4 percent below December 2009.
In the Midwest, existing-home sales rose 11.0 percent in December to 1.11 million, but were 4.3 percent below a year ago. The median sale price of an existing home in the Midwest was $139,700, up 3.3 percent from December 2009.
In the South, existing-home sales rose 10.1 percent in December to 1.97 million, but were 2.5 percent below a year ago. The median sale price of an existing home in the South was $148,400, unchanged from December 2009.
Sales in the West surged 16.7 percent to 1.33 million in December, but were 1.5 percent below December 2009. The median price of an existing home in the West was $204,000, down 5.6 percent from a year ago.
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