| Consensus | Consensus Range | Actual | Previous | Revised | |
| Annual Rate | 4.08M | 3.95M to 4.18M | 3.98M | 4.09M | 4.13M |
| Month over Month | -3.6% | 1.7% | 2.7% | ||
| Year over Year | -1.0% | -1.4% | -0.5% |
Highlights
Sales of existing homes in March decline due to a confluence of factors. Consumer confidence is low and concerns about job security are widespread, and inventories of the more sought-after units are limited. While mortgage rates remain favorable for loans taken out in February the Freddie Mac average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is up from 6.05 percent in February to 6.18 percent in March. This is below 6.65 percent in March 2025. Hopes for a decline in mortgage rates in April are unlikely to be fulfilled and the situation in the economy is not likely to look any better to consumers.
March sales of existing homes are down 3.6 percent to a 3.98 million unit seasonally adjusted annual rate after an upward revision to 4.13 million units in February. Resales are down 1.0 percent from a year ago. The consensus in the Econoday survey of forecasters looks for resales at a 4.08 million unit pace.
Resales are lower in March for both single-family and multi-unit properties. Single-family home resales are down 3.5 percent to 3.63 million units after 3.76 million in February and are little changed from a year ago at down 0.3 percent. Multi-unit sales are down 5.4 percent to 350,000 units after 370,000 units in February.
The median price of an existing home is up 2.7 percent in March to $408,800 from 398,000 in February and up 1.4 percent to $403,100 in March 2025. The months' supply of homes available for sale is up to 4.1 in March after 3.8 in February and 4.0 in March 2025.
The average number of days a home is on the market is 41 in March after 47 in February and 36 in March 2025. First-time buyers accounted for 32 percent of existing home sales compared to 34 percent in February, 46 in January, and 32 percent in March 2025. Competition for available units is rising a little but may only constitute a rebound from January and February when severe cold and winter storms kept some buyers out of the market.
Market Consensus Before Announcement
Forecasters see sales nearly stable at an annual 4.08 million versus 4.09 million in February.
Definition
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.
Description
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.
