Existing Home Sales Edge Higher in July

Economics
Published
Existing Home Sales - July 2024

Existing home sales increased for the first time in five months, according to the National Association of Realtors, as improving inventory and declining mortgage rates motivated more prospective buyers to act.

Despite these changes, sales remained sluggish and low inventory continued to push up median home prices. However, NAHB expects increased activity in the coming months as mortgage rates continue to moderate. Improving inventory is likely to ease home price growth and enhance housing affordability.

Home owners with lower mortgage rates have opted to stay put, avoiding trading existing mortgages for new ones with higher rates. This "lock-in" trend is driving home prices higher and holding back inventory. Mortgage rates are expected to continue to decrease gradually, leading to increased demand (and unlocking more of the lock-in inventory) in the coming quarters.

Total existing home sales rose 1.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million in July. This marks the first increase after four months of declines. On a year-over-year basis, sales were still 2.5% lower than a year ago.

At the current sales rate, July unsold inventory sits at a 4.0-month supply (down from 4.1 last month, but up from 3.3 a year ago). This inventory level remains low compared to balanced market conditions (a 4.5- to 6-month supply) and illustrates the long-run need for more home construction.

The July median sales price of all existing homes was $422,600, up 4.2% from last year. This marked the 13th consecutive month of year-over-year increases. The median condominium/co-op price in July was up 2.7% from a year ago at $367,500. This rate of price growth will slow as inventory increases.

NAHB Senior Economist Fan-Yu Kuo provides more details, including regional and demographic breakdowns, in this Eye on Housing post.

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Economics | Housing Affordability

Aug 21, 2025

New and Existing Homes Remain Largely Unaffordable in Second Quarter

While new homes remain largely unaffordable, builder efforts to improve housing affordability paid dividends in the second quarter of 2025, according to the latest data from the NAHB/Wells Fargo Cost of Housing Index (CHI). The CHI results from the second quarter of 2025 show that a family earning the nation’s median income of $104,200 needed 36% of its income to cover the mortgage payment on a median-priced new home. Low-income families, defined as those earning only 50% of median income, would have to spend 71% of their earnings to pay for the same new home.

Economics

Aug 20, 2025

Custom Home Building Grows as Broader Housing Market Struggles

An analysis of census data by NAHB economists shows that custom home building grew 4% in the second quarter of 2025 as high interest rates and home prices suppress demand for traditional spec home production.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Aug 21, 2025

Existing Home Sales Rise in July

Existing home sales rebounded in July as mortgage rates retreated from the recent peak and home price growth slowed, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Economics

Aug 21, 2025

New and Existing Homes Remain Largely Unaffordable in Second Quarter

While new homes remain largely unaffordable, builder efforts to improve housing affordability paid dividends in the second quarter of 2025, according to the latest data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Cost of Housing Index (CHI).

Economics

Aug 20, 2025

Retreat for Single-Family Built-for-Rent Housing

Single-family built-for-rent construction fell back in the second quarter, as a higher cost of financing crowded out development activity.