Increased inventory levels in June helped push existing-home sales to their highest levels since October 2013, according to a recent report by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). Existing-home sales, which include recently purchased single family, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops rose 2.6 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted 5.04 million units for the year.
NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun believes the market is moving in the right direction. "Inventories are at their highest level in over a year and price gains have slowed to much more welcoming levels in many parts of the country. This bodes well for rising home sales in the upcoming months as consumers are provided with more choices," he said. "On the contrary, new home construction needs to rise by at least 50 percent for a complete return to a balanced market because supply shortages – particularly in the West – are still putting upward pressure on prices."
Nationally, total housing inventory increased 2.2 percent during June to 2.3 million units. The median time for homes to sell was 44 days in June, down from 47 days in May. Forty-two percent of June home sales were on the market for less than a month.
