Existing home sales post record spike in July

Existing-home sales jumped a record 24.7% month over month in July, marking two consecutive months of significant gains, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Existing-home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.86 million in July, NAR reported. Each of the four major regions showed double-digit month-over-month increases, and the Northeast was the only region to show an annual decline.

“The housing market is well past the recovery phase and is now booming, with higher home sales compared to the pre-pandemic days,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “With the sizeable shift in remote work, current homeowners are looking for larger homes, and this will lead to a secondary level of demand even into 2021.”

The median existing-home price in July was $304,100, up 8.5% from July 2019’s $280,400. July’s price increase marked 101 straight months of year over year price gains, and the first time ever that median home prices on the national level broke $300,000.

Tight inventory, however, continues to be an issue. Total housing inventory at the end of July was 1.5 million units, down 2.6% from June and 21.1% from July 2019. Unsold inventory is currently at a 3.1-moth supply, down from 3.9 months in June.

“The number of new listings is increasing, but they are quickly taken out of the market from heavy buyer competition,” Yun said. “More homes need to be built.”