Existing home sales at 1-1/2 yr-high, supply falls

 

Existing home sales at 1-1/2 yr-high, supply falls

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. home resales surged in January to a 1-1/2 year high and the supply of properties on the market was the lowest in almost seven years, pointing to a nascent housing recovery.

The National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday existing home sales increased 4.3 percent to an annual rate of 4.57 million units last month, the highest since May 2010.

"Overall this is not such a bad number. It's reflective of a better jobs market, but the improvement is going to be in fits and starts," said Yelena Shulyatyeva, U.S. economist at BNP Paribas in New York.

However, the tenor of the report was weakened somewhat by a sharp downward revision to December's sales data to show only a 4.38 million-unit rate rather than the previously reported 4.61 million-unit pace.

That followed an annual revision of the seasonal factors for the series going back three years. Sales in December actually fell 0.5 pct from November, instead of the 5 percent increase reported last month.

There were no revisions to monthly prices and inventory data. Economists polled by Reuters had expected sales to rise to a 4.65 million-unit sales pace.

Still, the report was the latest to add to tentative signs of improvement in the housing market. The inventory of unsold homes on the market is shrinking.

Last month, there were 2.31 million unsold homes on the market last month, the lowest since March 2005. That represented a 6.1 months' supply at January's sales pace, the lowest since April 2006 and down from 6.4 months in December.

A supply of 6 months is generally considered ideal. But the median sales price fell 2 percent to $154,700 in January from a year ago.

The Federal Reserve has suggested a number of ways other policymakers could step in to help the beaten-up market, including giving government-controlled mortgage finance firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac a bigger role in refinancing loans.

Distressed properties, foreclosures and short sales, which typically occur at deep discounts, accounted for 35 percent of overall sales last month, up from 32 percent in December.

A third of pending existing home sales contracts were canceled, the NAR said.

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Fannie Mae: Outlook for Home Prices Rises Again

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Fannie Mae: Outlook for Home Prices Rises Again

By Mia Lamar

The consumer outlook for U.S. home prices improved again in January, extending a recent upward trend in housing market sentiment, according to mortgage market firm Fannie Mae.

For its monthly reading, Fannie Mae said respondents in its January survey predicted home prices will rise by 1% over the next year, up from the 0.8% gain forecast in December.

Views on the direction of the U.S. economy also continued to improve. According to the respondents, 30% said they believe the U.S. economy is on the right track, up from 22% with that view in December. The percentage who said the economy is headed in the wrong direction fell to 63% of respondents, marking a 6 percentage point decline from the previous month.

Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan pointed to a slowly improving U.S. job market as one cause for rising confidence in the long-battered housing market. ”The strengthening employment picture last Friday provides encouragement that the improving trend in consumer confidence will continue and will at some point be reflected in a firming up of consumer spending,” Duncan said.

A report last week from the U.S. Labor Department showed nonfarm payrolls grew 243,000 last month, the largest gain since April. The jobless rate fell from 8.5% to 8.3%, the lowest it has been since February 2009.

Fannie Mae’s January survey also found 44% of respondents expect their personal financial situation to improve over the next year, up from 40% with that view in December.

The survey is based upon a monthly poll of roughly 1,000 adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1%.

Write to Mia Lamar at mia.lamar@dowjones.com

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