Biggest increase in US home sales since 2020

US pre-owned home sales reversed a record decline in February and began to rise. After declining throughout the year due to rising interest rates and lower purchasing power, US pre-owned home sales recorded a surprise increase in February. According to data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), pre-owned home sales increased by 14.5 percent in February to 4.58 million on an annualized basis. This was the highest level since September. The median estimate of economists participating in a Bloomberg survey was a 5 percent increase. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, whose views were included in the statement, said, “Buyers who took into account the change in mortgage interest rates turned the decline in interest rates into an opportunity. We see that sales increased strongly in regions where housing prices fell.” Average housing prices fell by 0.2 percent to $363,000. This was the first decline recorded in 11 years. Pre-owned home sales account for approximately 90 percent of the US housing market.