Having slipped 0.7 percent in May and 0.6 percent in June, the pace of existing-home sales across the U.S. dropped another 0.7 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.34 million sales which is 1.5 percent lower versus the same time last year and the fifth recorded year-over-year decline in as many months.
At the same time, while the inventory of existing homes on the market slipped by 1.5 percent to 1.92 million homes with typical seasonality in play, inventory levels are even on a year-over-year basis while the median price of the homes that traded hands last month slipped 2.6 percent but remains 4.5 percent higher versus the same time last year.
And out West, while the pace of existing-home sales rose 4.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.19 million sales in July, it remains 4.0 percent below its mark at the same time last year and the median sale price dropped 5.9 percent to $392,700 but remains 5.1 percent higher on a year-over-year basis (versus 10.2 percent higher in June).