According to the latest National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions (NAFCU) Macro Data Flash report, existing home sales fell in July, representing the sixth consecutive month reflecting a decline.
The analysis showed that existing home sales decreased at an accelerated rate of 5.9 percent during July, coming in at a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate of 4.81 million units – for a 20.2 percent decline in sales compared to 2021.
“Outside of the immediate onset of COVID in 2020, July sales levels were the lowest of any month since 2014,” NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long said. “Supply remains tight, but conditions are improving modestly as a result of the slower sales price.”
Each of the four regions experienced a decrease in existing home sales. In the West, sales fell by 9.4 percent on the month, followed by a 7.5 percent dip in the Northeast, a South decline of 6.2 percent, and a fall of 1.6 percent in the Midwest.
“Higher borrowing rates and lower demand have resulted in a slower construction pace, which limits trade-up possibilities for current homeowners,” Long said. “The housing market is starting to show signs of stabilizing, but improvement is unlikely without a large drop in rates or the appearance of substantial quantity of inventory.”