Pre-owned home sales up 0.4%

Existing-home sales rose slightly in November, a hopeful sign of stabilization in the wake of mortgage disruptions earlier this year, according to the National Association of Realtors, which performed the study.

Across the nation, pre-home sales rose 0.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of about 5 million units, up a bit from the 4.98 million units sold in October 2007.

Still, the sales figures pale in comparison to the 6.25 million-unit level recorded in November 2006 -- representing a 20-percent drop.

"Near term, existing-home sales should continue to hover in a narrow range, just as they have since September," said NAR economist Lawrence Yun in a statement released Dec. 31. "And that's good news because it will be a further sign that the housing market is stabilizing."

Mortgage interest rates are near historic lows, and the most current data shows decelerating price declines, Yun said, along with a modest reduction in the number of homes on the market.

The national media existing-home price for all housing types was $210,200 in November 2007, down 3.3 percent from November 2006.
There remains a downward drag on the national median as the mix of closed sales has shifted away from expensive markets, Yun said.
"Just like the weather, there are large local variations in home prices," he said.
The total housing inventory declined 3.6 percent at the end of November 2007 to 4.27 million existing homes available for sale. This represents a 10.3-month supply. With inventory continuing at such a high level, additional pricing reductions may be required in some areas to induce buyers back into the market, Yun said.

NAR also said Congress could provide a spark in the housing market by taking steps to expand affordable financing.

"Raising the limis on conforming loans would significantly revive home sales," said Richard Gaylord, NAR president. "This would help creditworthy buyers in hard-hit regions like California and Florida by greatly increasing access to low-interest rate mortgages."

NAR represents more than 1.3 million real estate professionals.


This is very weird to me. The market has always gotten bad press and that real estate is bad. HMMMM, what does this mean? Maybe a change for the better here!