August
saw another increase in the trend of existing home sales but a bit of
slippage in new sales, but both existing and new activity was up
considerably (existing +9.3% and new sales +27%) from August
2011.
Existing-home sales continued to improve in August and the national
median price rose on a year-over-year basis for the sixth straight month,
according to the National Association of Realtors®.
Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include
single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, rose 7.8
percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.82 million in August
from 4.47 million in July, and are 9.3 percent higher than the 4.41
million-unit level in August 2011.
Lawrence Yun , NAR chief economist, said favorable buying conditions
get the credit. “The housing market is steadily recovering with consistent
increases in both home sales and median prices. More buyers are taking
advantage of excellent housing affordability conditions,” he said.
“Inventories in many parts of the country are broadly balanced, favoring
neither sellers nor buyers. However, the West and Florida markets are
experiencing inventory shortages, which are placing pressure on prices.”
The national median existing-home price2 for all housing types was
$187,400 in August, up 9.5 percent from a year ago. The last time there
were six back-to-back monthly price increases from a year earlier was
from December 2005 to May 2006. The August increase was the strongest
since January 2006 when the median price rose 10.2 percent from a year
earlier.
In new home activity, sales of new single-family houses in August 2012
were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 373,000, according to
estimates released jointly on September 26th by the U.S. Census Bureau
and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 0.3 percent
(±9.3%) below the revised July rate of 374,000, but is 27.7 percent (±18.8%)
above the August 2011 estimate of 292,000.
The median sales price of new houses sold in August 2012 was $256,900;
the average sales price was $295,300. The seasonally adjusted estimate
of new houses for sale at the end of August was 141,000. This represents
a supply of 4.5 months at the current sales rate.
In months and years past, declining prices and a surplus of “for sale” signs enticed buyers into signing contracts. But market conditions are changing; home prices increased during 2012′s second quarter.
Home buyers and investors alike are trying to gauge the health of the real estate market. One of the best ways to predict sales figures is to ask Americans if they plan on buying. The Fannie Mae National Housing Survey of May 2012 reported on the attitudes of 1,002 polled Americans toward the real estate market and the economy. The answers reflect the current—and the future—state of the housing market.
One of the signs of market recovery is the rise in The Pending Home Sales Index, a tool that measures the number of signed real estate contracts on existing homes. The index rose 4.1 percent in March to 101.4, reflecting an increase in the number of pending home sales. In comparison, the index is currently 12.8 percent higher than a year ago, when it sat at 89.9. If these pending home sales make it through to closing, it will bring down inventory across the country and bring balance to the real estate market… 
In the current economic climate, every dollar saved helps. Though new homeowners will pay more for their upfront insurance premiums, existing homeowners can save thousands by refinancing.
