Sales of previously owned US homes fell in June to a two-year low as a surge in borrowing costs continues to erode affordability.
Contract closings fell 5.4% from May to an annualized 5.12 million, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed Wednesday. The median estimate called for 5.35 million in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
Mortgage rates near the highest since 2008 have curbed buyer demand and pushed some buyers to back out of deals. And as inventory starts to grow, some sellers are now cutting prices. “Falling housing affordability continues to take a toll on potential home buyers,” Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said in a statement. “Both mortgage rates and home prices have risen too sharply in a short span of time.”The number of homes for sale rose for the first time in three years on an annual basis to 1.26 million, the highest since September. At the current sales pace it would take three months to sell all the homes on the market, marking the fifth straight rise in months’ supply.
“Homes priced right are selling very quickly, but homes priced too high are deterring prospective buyers,” Yun said.
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