Home Prices Posted Largest Annual Drop in More Than 11 Years in April

Sales of previously owned homes fell in April from the prior month and prices declined from a year earlier by the most in more than 11 years. 

U.S. existing home sales, which make up most of the housing market, fell 3.4% in April from the prior month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.28 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. April sales fell 23.2% from a year earlier. 

The national median existing-home price fell 1.7% in April from a year earlier to $388,800, the biggest year-over-year price decline since January 2012, NAR said. Median prices, which aren’t seasonally adjusted, were down 6% from a record $413,800 in June. Home prices have fallen the most in the western half of the U.S., while prices continue to rise from a year earlier in many eastern markets.

Existing-home sales have declined for 14 out of the past 15 months and are down roughly one-third since the start of 2022. 

A steep rise in mortgage rates since the start of 2022 has made home purchasing far less affordable to most buyers, weighing on demand. At the same time, the higher rates have discouraged current homeowners with locked-in low mortgage rates from selling, keeping the supply of homes on the market lower than normal.