Real Estate in Hilton Head Island, SC. / Darrell Juvay Finch Associate Broker RE/MAX Island Realty

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hilton Head , Beaufort, Blufton, South Carolina, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) October 19, 2010 -- Home Sales Pace

Sales of existing U.S. homes made a comeback in August, after a brutal decline in July, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Total existing homes sales revived by 7.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million units, up from an upwardly revised 3.84 million in July, but the new pace was down 19.0 percent compared with August 2009 sales.

The NAR does not see this uptick in sales as a sign of a quick market turnaround though.

"The housing market is trying to recover on its own power without the home buyer tax credit," said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. "Despite very attractive affordability conditions, a housing market recovery will likely be slow and gradual because of lingering economic uncertainty," Yun said.

The national median existing-home price dropped in August to $178,600 from $182,600 in July. That continues the general trend for this year, as the median price has increased five out the past six months. The price increased from the previous year though, up 0.8 percent when it was $177,200.

The NAR defines existing homes as all previously-owned single-family homes, townhouses, condominiums, and co-ops. The group "seasonally adjusts" the sales numbers to factor in things like inclement weather, school sessions, winter holidays, etc to smooth out the trends. The NAR also describes its sales data based on an annual pace. The monthly figure represents the total number of housing units that would be sold in one year if the current rate were to continue unchanged.

Sales Pace by Region

Sales picked up in every region of the country in August, but the West was the shining star with a 13.8 percent increase to an annual sales pace of 990,000. That rate put Western sales 16.1 percent behind August 2009 sales.

The Northeast showed the next biggest improvement with a 7.9 percent rise in sales to an annual rate of 680,000, although sales were still down 24.4 percent over the previous year.

In the Midwest, sales jumped up 5.0 percent over July numbers to an annual pace of 840,000. Compared with one year earlier, sales were done 26.3 percent.

The South posted a 5.2 percent growth in August sales, to a pace of 1.62 million homes, but saw a yearly decrease of 13.4 percent.
Home Prices

The median home price, the point at which half of all homes are sold for more and half are sold for less, fell across the nation in August on a monthly basis.

The median price in the Northeast fell to $260,300 from $263,800 in July, but it rose 7.6 percent from the previous year.

In the Midwest, the price fell to $149,600 down from $151,600, but it was up 0.4 percent from August 2009.

The South saw its price drop to $155,000 from $156,300 in July. That was down 1.5 from one year earlier.

The median price in the West declined by more than $10,000, to $214,700 from $224,800. Compared with the year before the new price was down 2.5 percent.

Inventory

The number of existing-homes for sale in August slipped down 0.6 percent to to 3.98 million units. At the current sales pace that represent an 11.6-month supply, down from a 12.5-month supply in July.


Next Report

Data for September existing home sales, prices, and inventory will be available at the end of October.

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