Existing homes sales pares July gain in August

• August Existing Home Sales: -2.0% to 5.880M vs. 5.890M consensus and 6.00M prior (revised from 5.900M).
• The inventory of unsold homes decreased 1.5% to 1.29 million from July to August – equivalent to 2.6 months of the monthly sales pace.

• Regional Breakdown:

• Existing-home sales in the Northeast slid 1.4% in August, recording an annual rate of 730,000, a 2.7% decline from August 2020. The median price in the Northeast was $407,800, up 16.8% from one year ago.

• Existing-home sales in the Midwest fell 1.4% to an annual rate of 1,370,000 in August, a 2.1% decline from a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $272,200, a 10.5% jump from August 2020.

• Existing-home sales in the South slipped 3.0% in August, registering an annual rate of 2,550,000, down 0.8% from the same time one year ago. The median price in the South was $303,200, a 12.8% climb from one year ago.

• Existing-home sales in the West decreased 0.8%, posting an annual rate of 1,230,000 in August, down 1.6% from one year ago. The median price in the West was $507,900, up 11.4% from August 2020.