November sees existing-home sales down 7.7% from previous month
All four major regions across the U.S. saw a decrease in purchases in November, according to the latest existing-home sales report from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Total existing-home sales were down 7.7% from September to October and down a staggering 35.4% from last November.
During the month, the national average mortgage rate rose above 7%, then started coming down on the heels of good economic news in the middle of the month. However, these high rates, along with elevated home prices, seems to be keeping buyers on the sidelines.
"In essence, the residential real estate market was frozen in November, resembling the sales activity seen during the COVID-19 economic lockdowns in 2020," said Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at NAR. "The principal factor was the rapid increase in mortgage rates, which hurt housing affordability and reduced incentives for homeowners to list their homes. Plus, available housing inventory remains near historic lows."
Looking at existing-home sales trends
The decrease of existing-home sales is common as we enter the winter months, especially around the holidays. However, we see a stark difference from where we were last year. Even though we’re in a dramatically different rate environment, these November numbers are disappointing.
| Month | Month-over-month | Year-over-year | Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate |
| Up 6.7% | Down 2.3% | 6.5 million | |
| Down 7.2% | Down 2.4% | 6.02 million | |
| Down 2.7% | Down 4.5% | 5.77 million | |
| Down 2.4% | Down 5.9% | 5.61 million | |
| Down 3.4% | Down 8.6% | 5.41 million | |
| Down 5.4% | Down 14.2% | 5.12 million | |
| Down 5.9% | Down 20.2% | 4.81 million | |
| Down 0.4% | Down 19.9% | 4.80 million | |
| Down 1.5% | Down 23.8% | 4.71 million | |
| Down 5.9% | Down 28.4% | 4.43 million | |
| November | Down 7.7% | Down 35.4% | 4.09 million |
Silver linings in home prices and inventory The median single-family home price in November came in at $370,700, lower than the mark in October of $379,100. This was an increase of 3.5% from November 2021, the 129th consecutive month of year-over-year increases. However, home prices have been coming down since a record high in June, which is good news for homebuyers trying to avoid buying when homes are their most expensive.
| Month | Median existing-home price | Month-over-month | Year-over-year |
| $350,300 | Down 2.2% | Up 15.4% | |
| $357,300 | Up 2.0% | Up 15.0% | |
| $375,300 | Up 5.0% | Up 15.1% | |
| $391,200 | Up 4.2% | Up 10.8% | |
| $407,600 | Up 4.2% | Up 14.8% | |
| $416,000 | Up 2.1% | Up 13.4% | |
| $403,800 | Down 2.9% | Up 10.8% | |
| $389,500 | Down 3.5% | Up 7.7% | |
| $384,800 | Down 1.2% | Up 8.4% | |
| $379,100 | Down 1.5% | Up 6.6% | |
| November | $370,700 | Down 2.2% | Up 3.5% |
There is also good news on the housing inventory front, as there were 1.14 million units available at the end of November. That number is down from October, but up from November 2021. There is a 3.3-month supply of unsold inventory at the current sales pace, up from last year.
"The market may be thawing since mortgage rates have fallen for five straight weeks," Yun notes. "The average monthly mortgage payment is now almost $200 less than it was several weeks ago when interest rates reached their peak for this year."
Regional breakdown
All four regions saw declines in existing-home sales activity during this traditionally slow time of year:
- Northeast: Down 7.0% to an annual rate of 530,000, down 28.4% from November 2021
- Midwest: Down 5.6% to an annual rate of 1,020,000, down 30.6% from November 2021
- South: Down 7.1% to an annual rate of 1,840,000, down 35.0% from November 2021
- West: Down 12.5% with an annual rate of 700,000, down 45.7% from November 2021
Source: https://www.nar.realtor/newsroom/existing-home-sales-dipped-7-7-in-november