U.S. Existing Home Sales Fall For A Sixth Straight Month; Prices Remain Elevated  

 

• The U.S. existing home sales fell to a fresh two-year low in July, further evidence that the Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy tightening campaign was dampening demand for housing, although home price levels remain high.
• Existing home sales dropped 5.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81Mn units last month, the lowest level since May 2020 when sales hit their low point during the COVID-19 lockdowns, the National Association of Realtors said on Thursday. Outside the pandemic, sales were the slowest since November 2015. It was the sixth straight monthly sales decline.
• Home resales, which account for the bulk of U.S. home sales, plunged 20.2% on a year-on-year basis. The report came on the heels of data this week showing single-family housing starts, which account for the biggest share of homebuilding, tumbled to a two-year low in July. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market sentiment index fell below the break-even level of 50 in August for the first time since May 2020.
• Mortgage rates, which move in tandem with U.S. Treasury yields, have soared even higher. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is hovering around an average of 5.22%, up from 3.22% at the start of the year, according to data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac.

(Source: Reuters)