US existing home sales increased 10% in September compared to August. The seasonally adjusted annual rate of home sales was 4.53 million, up from 4.12 million the previous month. However, this figure was still down 19.1% from September 2009. The median selling price fell 2.4% annually to $171,700. While two consecutive months of sales increases provides hope, the housing market remains volatile and median prices are below pre-recession levels due to high supply and distressed properties.

1. Date: October 25, 2010
US Existing Home Sales, September 2010 Results
Source: National Association of REALTORS
Link to Release:
http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2010/10/sept_strong
Summary: US resale home transactions climbed 10 per cent on a month-over-
month basis in September. The seasonally-adjusted annual rate of home
sales was 4.53 million, compared to 4.12 million in August. Though this figure
was down 19.1 percent compared to the 5.60 million-unit pace recorded in
September of 2009, it was the second month-over-month increase in a row.
The median selling price fell 2.4 per cent annually to $171,700.
Analysis: In 2010, U.S. consumer confidence has remained low due to the
underwhelming performance of the American economy. This lack of
confidence has been reflected in the resale housing market. Two consecutive
months of sales increases certainly provide some hope that we may be seeing
an improvement in housing demand, but given the volatility of home sales over
the past two years the recent improvement is far from a trend. Median selling
prices remain well below the pre-recession peak, partly because of the high
level of supply in the marketplace and partly because of the high percentage of
listings accounted for by distressed properties.
-30.0%
-25.0%
-20.0%
-15.0%
-10.0%
-5.0%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
Source: National Association of REALTORS
US Existing Home SALES
Monthly PerCent Change(Seasonally Adjusted)
$150,000
$155,000
$160,000
$165,000
$170,000
$175,000
$180,000
$185,000
Source: National Association of REALTORS
US Existing Home MEDIAN PRICE
Written By:
Jason Mercer
TREB Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
jmercer@trebnet.com