While sales of existing homes slipped 1.2 percent in June from May, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) says sales rose 15.2 percent over June of 2012. The seasonally-adjusted annual rate (SAAR) fell from 5.14 million in May to 5.08 million in June. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, says higher interest rates may have affected sales. “We’re still dealing with a large pent-up demand. However, higher mortgage interest rates will bite into high-cost regions of California, Hawaii and the New York City metro area market.” Yun also says low inventory has held back sales, noting in June there was a 5.2-month supply at the current sales pace, a drop of 7.6 percent from a year ago. Low inventory also contributed to home price increases, MHProNews has learned from CNNMoney, as the median price rose 13.5 percent from June 2012 to $214,000, marking the 16th consecutive month prices have risen.
