Sales of existing single-family homes set another record in June, according to an industry trade group, despite mixed economic signs and rising interest rates.
Sales of existing homes rose 2.1 percent in June, to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 6.95 million units from an upwardly revised level of 6.81 million units in May, according to the National Association of Realtors. That sales pace was 17.4 percent above the pace of 5.92 million units recorded in June 2003.
David Lereah, the NAR’s chief economist, said last month’s performance was close to the peak for the housing market.
“Although we’ve been expecting sales to ease, it’s clear the market has tremendous momentum,” Lereah said. “The improving job market and higher consumer confidence are feeding into a large demographic demand for housing. It’s unlikely that we’ll top the pace in June, but home sales remain very healthy and are likely to stay quite strong, even with some easing expected in the second half of the year.”
The national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.29 percent in June, up from 6.27 percent in May, according to Freddie Mac.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the Midwest rose 3.5 percent in June to a record annual rate of 1.46 million units, and were 11.5 percent higher than in June 2003. The median price in the Midwest was $156,600, up 7 percent from a year ago.