U.S. Existing Home Sales Rebound More Than Expected In October

(RTTNews) - Existing home sales in the U.S. rebounded by more than expected in the month of October, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday.

The report said existing home sales surged by 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 3.96 million in October after slumping by 1.3 percent to a revised rate of 3.83 million in September.

Economists had expected existing home sales to jump by 2.3 percent to a rate of 3.93 million from the 3.84 million originally reported for the previous month.

NAR said existing home sales in October were up by 2.9 percent compared to the same month a year ago, marking the first year-over-year increase since July 2021.

"The worst of the downturn in home sales could be over, with increasing inventory leading to more transactions," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "Additional job gains and continued economic growth appear assured, resulting in growing housing demand."

"However, for most first-time homebuyers, mortgage financing is critically important," he added. "While mortgage rates remain elevated, they are expected to stabilize."

The report also said housing inventory at the end of October totaled 1.37 million units, up 0.7 percent from 1.36 million units in September and up 19.1 percent from 1.15 million units a year ago.

The median existing home price in October was $407,200, up 4.0 percent compared to $391,600 in the same month last year, NAR said.

Next Tuesday, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on new home sales in the month of October.