There is some good news for homeowners hidden in the latest report on home sales. It showed that the number of existing home sales fell 0.4% in August. That was better than the 2.9% drop economists expected.
Stronger sales numbers might be related to the small August dip in mortgage rates. Rates dropped to 5.2%, down from 5.5% in July. Buyers may have rushed to lock in low rates.
Price gains slowed in August, with the median sale price at $389,500. That’s a 7.7% jump from the same month a year ago but 5.9% below the all-time high reached in June.
Slow sales and falling prices are the bad news. The good news is that prices are unlikely to fall much further because supply is limited.
This post appeared first on Money & Markets, LLC.