Sales of previously owned U-S homes edged down 0.5 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4 million, the National Association of Realtors reported.
That is the slowest April pace since 2009 and 2 percent below the same month last year.
Economists had expected a 2.7 percent increase.
Because the figure reflects contracts signed in February and March, the data set does not capture the late-April downtick in mortgage rates.
“Pent-up demand” awaits lower borrowing costs
“Home sales have been at 75 percent of normal or pre-pandemic activity for the past three years, even with seven million jobs added to the economy,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
“Any meaningful decline in mortgage rates will help release this demand.”
Thirty-year fixed rates flirted with 7.5 percent in late April, near a two-decade high, before easing modestly in May.
Supply hits a five-year high but is still below balance
Inventory jumped 9 percent from March and 21 percent from a year earlier to 1.45 million units, equal to a 4.4-month supply at the current sales pace.
That is the most homes on the market since 2019 but remains shy of the six-month level viewed as evenly balanced between buyers and sellers.
Higher supply is starting to restrain prices.
The median existing-home price rose 1.8 percent year on year to $414,000 — the slowest appreciation since July 2023.
Prices declined in the South and West, the report said.
Buyers gain negotiating power as pace cools
“At the macro level, we are still in a mild seller’s market,” Yun said.
“With the highest inventory levels in nearly five years, consumers are in a better situation to negotiate for better deals.”
Homes spent an average of 29 days on the market, faster than in March but longer than in April 2024.
First-time buyers represented 34 percent of transactions, essentially flat from last year.
Cancellation rates ticked up to 7 percent, versus a recent norm of 3 to 4 percent.
Luxury segment outperforms but momentum is fading
Sales of homes priced above $1 million rose nearly 6 percent year over year, while transactions in the $100,000-to-$250,000 bracket fell just over 4 percent.
Yun cautioned that strength at the high end may soften if volatile equity markets sap confidence.
“I think that is partly due to the stock-market shakeout that has occurred,” he said.