Sales of existing homes slipped 1% in February from the prior month on a seasonally adjusted basis, but rose 10% on a non-adjusted basis, according to new sales figures released Wednesday morning.
The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of previously owned single-family homes, condominiums and cooperatives fell to a 4.59 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in February from a 4.63 million rate in January. The January rate was revised upward by 6,000 units.
Overall, sales rose nearly 9% from a year ago.
Separately, RE/MAX LLC reported that sales rose 8.1% from January to February on a non-seasonally adjusted basis in the 53 cities it tracks. "All the data is pointing to a very active spring and summer selling season this year, which is great news for a recovering housing market," said Margaret Kelly, RE/MAX's chief executive.
According to NAR, the median price of a single-family home sold in February was $157,100, up just 0.3% from a year ago. The median price of a condo/coop unit was $153,000, a 1.6% increase from February 2011.
Foreclosure and short sales comprised 34% of all transactions in February.
"The bottom line is investors and first-time home buyers are competing for bargain-priced properties in much of the country with home prices stabilizing in many areas," said NAR president Moe Veissi.
Wednesday's report shows a spike in condo/co-op units going on the market with inventory jumping 27% to 322,000 units–a 7.3 month-supply based on the current sales pace.
The inventory of single-family homes edged up 1.4% from January to 2.1 million homes for sale-which represents a 6.2-month supply.
