US March Existing-Home Sales Up 3.7% From February -NAR |
| Wall Street Journal - Apr 20, 2011 |
Sales of previously occupied homes in the U.S. rose slightly in March at the start of the crucial spring selling season, but prices were weak, suggesting that any recovery in the struggling sector will be slow and modest.
Existing-home sales increased 3.7% from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. The results were slightly better than expected. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had expected home sales to rise by 2.5% to an annual rate of 5.0 million.
"While the increase is encouraging, we still do not see the gain as the start of a genuine recovery," wrote Wells Fargo & Co. economist Anika Khan. She noted that February's results were likely artificially depressed due to bad weather.
About 40% of existing homes bought last month were distressed properties--including foreclosures and sales in which the lender agrees to sell the home for less than the total mortgage amount. That was the highest percentage since April 2009.
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- Posted: 2011-04-20 11:21:20
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