CNN
The median price of a previously owned home in the U.S. grew 5.7% in April from a year earlier to $407,600, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS® released Wednesday. That was the fourth consecutive monthly increase and was a record for April prices.
NAR also reported that existing home sales, which make up the vast majority of transactions, fell 1.9% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.14 million. One shred of good news for housing in America, however, is that more homes are continuing to come to market. “The upper-end market is experiencing a sizable gain due to more supply coming onto the market,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, in a release. He added that “home prices reaching a record high for the month of April is very good news for homeowners.”
Yet that somehow didn’t deter some first-time buyers. The share of buyers who bought a home for the first time rose to 33% in April from 32% in March. “I don’t know how they are able to do it,” Yun said. “Maybe later we will find out that they got some help from family members in terms of a down payment.”
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