September 2023 Existing-Home Sales Fall to Lowest Level Since October 2010

NAR released a summary of existing-home sales data showing that housing market activity this September declined 2.0% from August 2023. September's existing-home sales reached a 3.96 million seasonally adjusted annual rate. September's sales of existing homes weakened 15.4% from September 2022.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types reached $394,300 in September, up 2.8% from a year ago.

Regionally, in September, all four regions showed price growth from a year ago. The Northeast had the largest gain of 5.2%, followed by the Midwest with an incline of 4.7%. The South increased 3.1%, while the West region rose 1.8%.

September's inventory of unsold listings as of the end of the month was up 2.7% from last month, standing at 1,130,000 homes for sale. Compared with September of 2022, inventory levels were down 8.1%. It will take 3.4 months to move the current inventory level at the current sales pace, well below the desired pace of 6 months. Inventory conditions continue to be a challenge for potential home buyers.  

It takes approximately 21 days for a home to go from listing to a contract in the current housing market. A year ago, it took 19 days.

From a year ago, all four regions had double-digit declines in sales in September. The West had the biggest dip of 19.3%, followed by the Midwest, which fell 18.4%. The Northeast decreased 16.7%, followed by the South, down 11.7%.   

Compared to August 2023, three of the four regions showed declines in sales. Only the Northeast had an incline of 4.2%. The West region had the biggest decline in sales of 5.3%, followed by the Midwest with a dip of 4.1%. The South region had the smallest decline last month of 1.1%.  

The South led all regions in percentage of national sales, accounting for 46% of the total, while the Northeast had the smallest share at 12.6%.

In September, single-family sales decreased 1.9%, and condominium sales were down 2.3% compared to last month. Single-family home sales were down 15.8%, while condominium sales fell 12.2% compared to a year ago. The median sales price of single-family homes rose 2.5% to $399,200 from September 2022, while the median sales price of condominiums inclined 6.8% at $331,300.