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February boost surprises economists, who say slump isn't over. Gains don't reach Akron area
Published on Tuesday, Mar 25, 2008
From staff and wire reports
After falling for six straight months, sales of existing homes posted an unexpected increase nationwide in February, which might have reflected more aggressive price cutting by sellers, a real-estate trade group reported.
The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes rose by 2.9 percent in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.03 million units. It was the biggest increase in a year and caught economists by surprise. They had been expecting a small decline.
The trade group reported that the median price in February fell to $195,900. That was the largest year-over-year drop on records going back to 1999.
Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors, said that prices in some formerly hot markets in California and Florida were seeing significant declines as sellers try to attract buyers.
Meanwhile, the Akron Area Board of Realtors reported February sales of 323 homes, down 6 percent from 345 a year earlier.
The average price was $116,815, down 10 percent from $130,343 in February 2007.
Nationally, analysts cautioned against reading too much into the one-month rise in sales. Many economists are predicting that the slump in housing will not bottom out until later this year, after prices fall further, allowing unsold inventory to be reduced.
''We're not expecting a notable gain in existing-home sales until the second half of this year, but the (February) improvement is another sign that the market is stabilizing,'' Yun said.
Sales of existing homes fell by 12.7 percent in 2007, the biggest decline in 25 years. Over the past two years, housing has been in a downturn made worse by a severe credit tightening after banks and mortgage companies took multibillion-dollar losses on loans that have gone into default.
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