WASHINGTON — Existing home sales inched down 0.2% to a seasonally adjusted 4.59 million-unit rate in March from an unrevised 4.60 million pace the previous month, the National Association of Realtors announced Tuesday.
The March rate represents a 7.5% decrease from March 2013.
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun noted that the March decline is the second month in a row with a month-over-month decline of less than 1%, which implies that sales may be stabilizing. He expects some "spring bounce" in the coming months.
Sales in March rose 9.1% in the Northeast and 4.0% in the Midwest, but fell 3.0% in the South and 3.7% in the West.
The median sales price was $198,500 in March, a 7.9% increase from a year ago.
Housing inventory levels rose 4.7% from the previous month to 1.99 million existing homes, representing a 5.2-month supply at the current pace. Inventory was up 3.1% from the March 2013 level.
