Existing-home sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.81 million in November, an increase of 5.6% compared with an upwardly revised 5.50 million in October, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
It was the third straight month that existing-home sales increased on a month-over-month basis.
What’s more, it was the strongest pace in almost 11 years, with all major regions except for the West seeing significant increases in sales activity.
Year over year, sales were up 3.8% compared with November 2016.
“Faster economic growth in recent quarters, the booming stock market and continuous job gains are fueling substantial demand for buying a home as 2017 comes to an end,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR, in a statement. “As evidenced by a subdued level of first-time buyers and increased share of cash buyers, move-up buyers with considerable down payments and those with cash made up a bulk of the sales activity last month. The odds of closing on a home are much better at the upper end of the market, where inventory conditions continue to be markedly better.”
The median existing-home price for all housing types in November was $248,000, up 5.8% from $234,400 in November 2016.
As of the end of November, there were about 1.67 million existing homes available for sale, nationwide, a 3.4-month supply at the current sales pace.
That’s 9.7% less inventory than was available a year earlier, according to NAR.
“The anticipated rise in mortgage rates next year could further cut into affordability if these staggeringly low supply levels persist,” Yun says. “Price appreciation is too fast in a lot of markets right now. The increase in homebuilder optimism must translate to significantly more new construction in 2018 to help ease these acute inventory shortages.”
First-time buyers represented about 29% percent of sales in November, down from 32% in October and down from 32% a year earlier.