Inventory of existing homes is now at the highest level since May 2020 — and it’s clearly taking the pressure off prices.
Sales of previously owned homes rose 2% in July compared with June to 4.01 million units, on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis, according to the National Association of realtors. Housing analysts had been expecting a slight decline. Sales were 0.8% higher than July 2024.
These sales are counted by closings, so contacts likely signed in May and June, when the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage was in decline. That rate exceeded 7% briefly in May and then ended June at 6.67%, according to Mortgage News Daily.
There were 1.55 million homes for sale at the end of July, an increase of 15.7% from the same month last year. At the current sales pace, that represents a 4.
