At the same time, unsold inventory is up from 3.1 months-of-supply in May 2023 to 3.7 months in 2024
June 24, 2024
Image: tab62 / stock.adobe.com
Existing home sales are down year-over-year, keeping homes on the market longer
Housing prices are up, and because of that, existing-home sales have once again decreased. According to the Calculated Risk blog, existing-home sales declined in May by 0.7% from the month prior and 2.8% year-over-year. Overall, 4.1 million homes were sold in May 2024 compared with 4.23 million homes last year.
Additionally, total housing inventory at the end of May was 1.28 million units, up 6.7% from April and 18.5% from one year ago. Unsold inventory is at a 3.7-month supply, up from 3.5 months-of-supply in April and 3.1 months-of-supply in May 2023.
Looking back to pre-pandemic levels, in May 2019 months-of-supply was at 4.3 months, so there is less supply now, on a months-of-supply basis, than prior to the pandemic. Even though sales have declined significantly compared to 2019, inventory has fallen even more - pushing down months-of-supply.
