U.S. existing-home sales increased for the first time in 5 months, as lower mortgage rates and rising supply helped boost market activity. According to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), sales of previously owned homes rose 1.3% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million units, exceeding economists’ expectations and ending the downward trend of recent months.

• New Listings were up 26.0 percent to 427.
• Pending Sales increased 34.4 percent to 363.
• Inventory grew 21.7 percent to 1,077 units.
• Prices moved higher as Median Sales Price was up 3.3 percent to $299,495.
• Days on Market decreased 24.4 percent to 68 days.
• Months Supply of Inventory was up 14.7 percent to 3.9 months, indicating that supply increased relative to demand.