Sales of previously owned US homes rose at their fastest pace in nearly six years in February, data showed on Monday, providing some good news for the recession hit-economy.
Sales rose 5.1 per cent in February to a 4.72 million-unit annual rate, notching their largest gain since July 2003, the National Association of Realtors said, but about 45 per cent of the sales were foreclosure or short-sale transactions.
Economists polled by Reuters were expecting home resales to slip to a 4.45 million-unit pace, from the 4.49 million rate initially reported for January.
The median national home price declined 15.5 percent from a year ago to $165,400, the second biggest decline on record.
The inventory of existing homes for sale rose 5.2 per cent to 3.80 million from the 3.61 million overstock reported in January. That represented a 9.7 month supply at the current sales pace, unchanged from January.
The housing market is at the core of the economic and financial meltdown that has triggered a collapse in asset prices, severely damaging household wealth. Stability in the housing market is seen as a key ingredient for the economy's recovery from a recession that started in December 2007.
Reuters