🥶The chill in existing home sales reflects the rise in mortgage rates in the fall. Losses were widespread with exception of the Midwest.
The weakness in January comes after the weakest year in 2024 for existing sales since the height of the subprime crisis in 2009.
The weakness in January comes after the weakest year in 2024 for existing sales since the height of the subprime crisis in 2009.
Comments
Median single-family sales prices were up 5% from a year ago, a slight step up from the 4.7% pace of the fourth quarter, reflecting tight supplies.
Problem: People who don’t buy rent and absorption of excess capacity in rental markets is occurring more rapidly than many expected. We could see shortages sooner than hoped.
Any good news on inflation due to slowdown in shelter costs could reverse as we get into 2026.