LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes ended a four-month slide in July as easing mortgage rates and a pickup in properties on the market encouraged home shoppers.
Existing home sales rose 1.3% last month from June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.
Sales fell 2.5% compared with July last year and are running below last year’s pace. The latest home sales came in slightly higher than the 3.92 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.
Home prices increased on an annual basis for the 13th consecutive month. The national median sales price rose 4.2% from a year earlier to $422,600. While down slightly from the all-time high set in June, last month’s median sales price was the highest on record for the month of July.
“Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish,” said Lawrence Yun, the NAR’s chief economist. “But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates.”