US existing home sales fall despite declining mortgage rates

(Sharecast News) - Existing US homes sales fell in August despite a fall in mortgage rates during the month, according to data published on Thursday. Sales decreased 2.5% month on month to a 3.86 million the National Association of Realtors said.

"Home sales were disappointing again in August, but the recent development of lower mortgage rates coupled with increasing inventory is a powerful combination that will provide the environment for sales to move higher in future months," NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said.

House prices continued to rise, with the median on an existing home rising 3.1% to a new record high of $416,700.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com