United States existing home sales fell 8.4% to a two-year low in January, though affordability improved as mortgage rates declined.
January’s seasonally-adjusted annual sales rate was 3.91 million, per the National Association of Realtors (NAR), representing a 4.4% year-over-year decrease. Economists had expected 4.18 million units.
"The decrease in sales is disappointing. The below-normal temperatures and above-normal precipitation this January make it harder than usual to assess the underlying driver of the decrease and determine if this month’s numbers are an aberration,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
“Affordability conditions are improving, with NAR’s Housing Affordability Index showing that housing is the most affordable it’s been since March 2022. This is due to wage gains outpacing home price growth and mortgage rates being lower than a year ago. However, supply has not kept pace and remains quite low.”
Sales dropped across all regions, with the West seeing the largest decrease at 10.3%. The West was the only region to report a year-over-year decline in median housing prices, but NAR’s Housing Affordability Index improved in all regions.
Median housing prices rose 0.9% nationally from January 2025, reaching US$393.400. This is the 31st consecutive month of year-over-year price increases, though the average 30-year mortgage rate fell from 6.19% in December to 6.10% in January.
Price increases were partly driven by condominiums and co-ops, which reported a 3.8% median price rise. Condominium sales fell 2.6% from December, while single-family home sales reported an 0.6% median price increase and a 9% drop in sales.
Properties’ median time on market was 46 days, rising from 39 days the previous month and 41 days in January 2025. Total housing inventory dropped 0.8% from December to 1.22 million units
