Sales of previously owned US homes fell in August, according to industry data released Thursday, but lower mortgage rates and growing supply were likely to boost the industry.
Existing home sales dropped 2.5 percent last month from July to an annual rate of 3.86 million, seasonally adjusted, said the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
This was largely in line with the 3.90 million consensus that analysts expected.
“Home sales were disappointing again in August, but the recent development of lower mortgage rates coupled with increasing inventory is a powerful combination that will provide the environment for sales to move higher in future months,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
Homebuyers in the United States have been grappling with a sharp rise in mortgage rates after the US central bank rapidly lifted the benchmark lending rate in 2022 to tackle inflation.
But with growing expectations that the Federal Reserve was going to pivot to rate cuts after holding rates at a decades-high level for months, mortgage rates have also shifted lower.
The popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.2 percent as of September 12, according to mortgage finance firm Freddie Mac — reaching the lowest level since February 2023.
A year ago, the rate was around 7.2 percent.
On Wednesday, the Fed kicked off a process of easing monetary policy with a bold half-percentage-point rate reduction, adding to expectations that mortgage rates would fall further.
Yun told a media call on Thursday that although home sales are struggling, home prices remained high.
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