NAR data on sales of existing homes in April shows a 0.5 percent month-over-month decrease to 4.00 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate from an unrevised 4.02 million units in March. The April level is below the consensus of 4.13 million units in the Econoday survey of forecasters. Sales are down 2.0 percent from a year ago.

Home resales are feeling the pinch of higher mortgage rates and low consumer confidence. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said, Home sales have been at 75% of normal or pre-pandemic activity for the past three years, even with seven million jobs added to the economy. Pent-up housing demand continues to grow, though not realized. Any meaningful decline in mortgage rates will help release this demand.

The Freddie Mac average monthly rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was around 6.84 percent in February, dipping to 6.65 percent in March, then rising to 6.73 percent in April. Homebuyers who had a lock on a mortgage in March were likely anxious to close the purchase in April. However, there appear to be fewer people buying homes overall at what is normally a busy season.

Sales are down in two regions, unchanged in one, and up in one. Sales in the Midwest are up 2.1 percent in April, a region that tends to have the more affordable housing market. Sales are flat in the South, down 2.0 percent in the Northeast, and down 2.9 percent.

The median price for an existing home is up 2.7 percent in April to $414,000 after $403,100 in March, and 1.8 percent higher than a year ago. The supply of homes on the market is up to 4.4 months' worth, the highest since mid-2019.

The average number of days a listing is on the market narrows to 29 in April after 36 in March but above 26 days in April 2024. The share of homes sold to first time buyers increases to 34 percent in April after 32 percent in March and above 33 in the year ago month.

Sales are expected at an annual 4.13 million unit rate in April versus 4.02 in March. The better forecast reflects the uptick in pending home sales for the month but even so, the housing market remains depressed.

Existing home sales tally the number of previously constructed homes, condominiums and co-ops in which a sale closed during the month. Existing homes (also known as home resales) account for a larger share of the market than new homes and indicate housing market trends.

This provides a gauge of not only the demand for housing, but the economic momentum. People have to be feeling pretty comfortable and confident in their own financial position to buy a house. Furthermore, this narrow piece of data has a powerful multiplier effect through the economy, and therefore across the markets and your investments. By tracking economic data such as home resales, investors can gain specific investment ideas as well as broad guidance for managing a portfolio.

Even though home resales don't always create new output, once the home is sold, it generates revenues for the realtor. It brings a myriad of consumption opportunities for the buyer.

Refrigerators, washers, dryers and furniture are just a few items home buyers might purchase. The economic"ripple effect" can be substantial especially when you think a hundred thousand new households around the country are doing this every month. Since the economic backdrop is the most pervasive influence on financial markets, home resales have a direct bearing on stocks, bonds and commodities. In a more specific sense, trends in the existing home sales data carry valuable clues for the stocks of home builders, mortgage lenders and home furnishings companies.