Existing Home Sales Marginally Higher in July
Sales of existing homes moved higher to an annual rate of 5.0M homes in July, 3.1 percent higher than the previous month. Increases were seen in both single-family and multi-family properties. Sales have remained in a 200,000 unit range near the current level for the last nine months, suggesting a bottom may be near.
Sales Show Marginal Improvement
- Sales moved higher for the second time in three months as sales have bounced along near their all-time bottom. We are not yet ready to call the current levels a bottom but clearly most of the declines are behind us.
- Median prices gave up some of their gains from June, but are still 8.9 percent above their cycle low set in February.
Inventories Remain Problematic
- Large inventories continue to stress the marketplace, most notably in condo and co-ops where supply has now reached 15.1 months.
- Looking at actual inventory levels, as opposed to months supply, inventory reached a new all-time high. This will limit real improvement in the market for some time to come.
Wachovia Corporation
http://www.wachovia.com
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