Overview
- Transactions rose 1.7% from January to a 4.09 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, with January revised up to 4.02 million from 3.91 million.
- Sales were still 1.4% lower than a year earlier, with a 6.0% drop in the Northeast while the West, South and Midwest recorded gains.
- Listings increased 2.4% to 1.29 million homes, equal to 3.8 months of supply and still below pre-pandemic levels.
- The median price reached $398,000, up 0.3% year over year, and first-time buyers’ share improved to 34%.
- The average 30-year mortgage rate hovered near 6% last week; Reuters reported earlier declines were linked in part to a presidential directive for the FHFA to buy agency MBS, and rising Treasury yields could curb further easing.