US home sales fell in June; would-be buyers can’t find homes
WASHINGTON — Homebuyers faced surging prices and a shrinking number of properties for sale in June — causing the pace of sales to fall.
Sales of existing homes slipped 1.8 per cent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.52 million, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.
The decline speaks to a troubling cycle for a U.S. housing market hampered by a worsening shortage of properties to buy. Despite solid demand in a relatively healthy economy for houses, sales listings have been steadily declining for more than two years. The resulting shortage has caused prices to consistently rise faster than wage gains, making it harder for more Americans to build up their net worth by becoming homeowners.
Sales levels have improved a mere 0.7 per cent over the past 12 months. The modest gains come despite solid levels of hiring that have pushed the unemployment rate to a healthy 4.4 per cent, a level that in the past would have helped to fuel further sales growth.