Existing Home Sales Down Month-Over-Month and Year-Over-Year in January

The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) reported on Tuesday (2-21-23) that total existing home sales, which are completed transactions for single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, recorded a 0.7% decline in January from December to a seasonally adjusted rate at 4.00 million homes. This is the twelfth consecutive month of declines. Year-over-year, sales are down 36.9% (6.34 million in January 2022).

At the end of January, total housing inventory registered was 980,000 units, up 2.1% month-over-month and up 15.3% (850,000) year-over-year. At the end of January, unsold inventory was at a 2.9-month supply—unchanged from December but up year-over-year from the January 2022 rate of 1.6 months.

The median existing home price for all housing types in January was $359,000, which represents a 1.3% increase from January 2022 ($354,300), as prices increased in three out of four regions. This marks 131 consecutive months of year-over-year increases, the longest-running streak on record.

In January, properties typically remained on the market for 33 days, up from 26 days in December and 24 days in November. Fifty-four percent of homes sold in January were on the market for less than a month.