Sales of existing U.S. homes fell more than expected in July, as the housing market took a breather from its record-toppling run, a trade association report showed Tuesday.
Sales of previously owned homes slipped 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.72 million units last month from a downwardly revised 6.92 million unit pace in June, the National Association of Realtors said.
Analysts had been expecting a drop to a 6.81 million unit rate before the report but most saw the drop as insignificant.
“End of the day, it’s just a very strong number. The housing sector doesn’t really show any sign of cooling off very much. This is not even a statistically significant move from June,” said Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wachovia Corp. in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Despite the fall, which was the first decline since January, the rate of existing home sales was still the third-highest on record.
“To me this is just a blip. I think it’s a more sustainable rate,” said David Lereah, chief economist of the Realtors group.
House prices also pushed further into uncharted territory. The national median home price hit a record high of $191,300, 8.7 percent more than the year-ago price.
Inventories were flat at 2.4 million units, or a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace.
U.S. mortgage interest rates stand not far above multidecade lows.
They rose in late spring and early summer as the U.S. economy gained strength, but concern about a spending slowdown pushed mortgage rates to four-month lows last week.
The Commerce Department reported last week that housing starts jumped sharply in July, climbing 8.3 percent to a 1.978 million unit pace.
