Resales Down 11.5% From a Year Ago

Existing-home sales rose a meager 0.5% in October from those of the previous month, with prices remaining flat, but resales fell 11.5% from the level recorded a year earlier, according to figures released by the National Association of Realtors.Resales stood at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.24 million units in October, with median prices skidding 3.5% to $221,000. The figures represent resales of single-family units as well as condominiums and cooperatives. The condo/co-op market performed worse than the single-family market, with sales falling 14.5% year-over-year and prices dropping 5.3%. Single-family sales fell 11.0% year-over-year, with prices dropping 3.4%. In a research note, Greenwich Capital analyst Omar Sharif wrote that, "It is obviously far too early to suggest that resales have found a bottom." NAR president Pat Vredevoogd Combs said, "With the exception of parts of the West, sellers are cutting their price enough to encourage sales." The NAR can be found online at http://www.realtor.org.