U.S. Existing-Home Sales Edged Up 0.7% in September
October 20 2017 - 10:30AM
Dow Jones News
By Sharon Nunn and Sarah Chaney
WASHINGTON--Sales of previously owned homes edged higher in
September, reflecting a rebound in home sales in a previously
hurricane-ravaged Houston.
Existing-home sales rose 0.7% from a month earlier to a
seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.39 million, the National
Association of Realtors said Friday. Economists surveyed by The
Wall Street Journal expected a rate of 5.30 million sales in
September.
Previously, existing-home sales fell in August to the lowest
level in a year, spurred mostly by a sharp drop in home sales in
Houston, which was affected by Hurricane Harvey, and a shortage of
homes on the market. But in September, Houston's existing-home
sales rebounded by 4%, boosting the overall sales figure.
Despite this monthly increase, existing-home sales fell 1.5% in
September from a year earlier.
Hurricane Irma hit the Southern and Eastern U.S. in September,
impacting housing starts, which fell in September for the fifth
time in six months. Irma could drag down October's existing-home
sales numbers.
In the wider housing market, inventory has been tight
recently--in part because of lackluster home construction--and that
has contributed to a run-up in home prices. The median price of
homes sold last month rose to $245,100 in September, up 4.2% from a
year earlier.
At the current sales pace, it would take 4.2 months to exhaust
the supply of homes on the market. That sales pace was 4.5 months
last year, reflecting the tightening housing market.
"[The] hurricane impact appears very short-lived, but we'll wait
for the data in Florida," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
"Housing starts are only incrementally slowly rising, but because
of the hurricane and the rebuilding efforts there... the
construction workers will be rebuilding, and that means less
workers available for new home construction. Housing starts may not
rise as robustly. The housing shortage can last into the next
year."
News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal, also operates
Realtor.com under license from the National Association of
Realtors.
Write to Sharon Nunn at Sharon.Nunn@wsj.com and Sarah Chaney at
Sarah.Chaney@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 20, 2017 10:15 ET (14:15 GMT)
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