Existing-home sales gained ground for the second month in a row in November, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) said.
Specifically, sales rose 4.8% from October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.15 million. Year over year, sales were up 6.1% from 3.91 million in November 2023. The annual increase is the greatest since June 2021, NAR noted.
The median existing-home price for all housing types in November was $406,100, up 4.7% from a year before. It was the 17th consecutive month of year-over-year gains.
“Home-sales momentum is building,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said. “More buyers have entered the market as the economy continues to add jobs, housing inventory grows compared to a year ago, and consumers get used to a new normal of mortgage rates between 6% and 7%.”
The 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.6% as of Dec. 12, according to Freddie Mac. That’s down from 6.69% a week before and 6.95% a year earlier.
By property type, single-family home sales rose 5% month over month and 7.4% year over year to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.76 million. The median existing single-family home price was $410,900, up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis.
Existing condominium and co-op sales rose 2.6% from October to an annual rate of 390,000. The median existing condo price was $359,800, up 2.8% from November 2023.
Homes typically remained on the market for 32 days in November, up from 29 days in October and 25 days in November 2023.