Overview
- National Association of Realtors data released Monday showed sales up 0.2% to a 4.02 million annual rate, missing forecasts that clustered around 4.05–4.12 million.
- Inventory rose to 1.47 million homes, equal to 4.4 months of supply, giving shoppers more options than a year ago but still short of pre‑pandemic levels as listings take a median 32 days to sell.
- The median sale price reached $417,700, up 0.9% year over year and the highest April on NAR’s record, even as NAR’s affordability index improved to 110.6 from 101.4 a year earlier.
- Mortgage rates swung from about 5.98% in late February to the mid‑6% range by early April and early May, with economists linking the move to hotter inflation and Middle East tensions that lifted borrowing costs.
- Sales rose in the South and Midwest, fell in the West, and were flat in the Northeast, while first‑time buyers made up 33% of purchases and cash deals accounted for 25% as the market’s spring rebound stayed tentative.