Can’t Make Up for the Past
Existing home sales in December regained only some of the declines felt in November, with the single-family market accounting for all of the gain.
Single-family sales were up 3.5 percent from a year ago, but condos/co-ops were flat over the same period. Some of the weakness may still be an inventory issue, with the months supply now tied with its cycle low.
First-Time Buyers Retrench
Despite falling mortgage rates and a stronger labor market, the traditional home buyer has been slow to return to the housing market. The share of sales to first-time buyers fell back to 29 percent after showing some promise in November. Meanwhile, investors and all-cash buyers accounted for a larger share in the month. Stronger fundamentals should boost future sales but gains are likely to be modest.
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