In December, existing-home sales were up, reporting a 5.0% gain from November to an annual rate of 4.61 million units, according to data released today by the National Association of Realtors.
The improvement was led by condo and co-op sales, which increased 8.7% from the previous month, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 500,000.
Single-family home sales grew 4.6% from November.
The lift helped last year’s overall existing-home sales top 2010’s number by 1.7% with a total of 4.26 million existing homes sold.
Also, the sales boost managed to reduce the market’s standing inventory to 2.38 million units, a 6.2-month supply, from a 7.2-month supply in November.
"Other data suggest that getting rid of the excess will be a drawn-out affair that will take at least two more years," according to Patrick Newport, U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.
All four regions of the U.S. shared in the monthly gains, led by the Northeast, which gained 10.7% on a monthly basis and increased 3.3% annually.
The Midwest jumped 8.3% and 9.5% on a monthly and yearly basis, respectively.
The South grew 2.9% from November and increased 3.5% from December 2010.
The West gained 2.6% on a monthly basis and decreased 0.8% year-over-year.
Newport stated, "The market for single-family homes picked up in the second half of 2011, after being stuck near the bottom for nearly three years. This pickup is real, but the road to recovery will be a slow one. Our projection is that existing-home sales in 2012 will be 9% higher than in 2011."
Source: buileronline.com