Existing-home sales fell 3.7 percent in March, but the median sales price rose 17.2 percent to a historic high of $329,100, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Existing-home sales continued a downward trend, falling 3.7 percent in March, according to the latest data released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors.

Lawrence Yun | Photo credit: NAR

While the decline is not as large as the 6.6 percent drop between January and February, sales continued on a clear downward path that began in earlier this year. The median sales price, meanwhile, rose 17.2 percent to a historic high of $329,100 and sales overall rose 12.3 percent from 2020. This is the 109th straight month of annual price gains.

“Consumers are facing much higher home prices, rising mortgage rates, and falling affordability, however, buyers are still actively in the market,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “The sales for March would have been measurably higher, had there been more inventory. Days-on-market are swift, multiple offers are prevalent, and buyer confidence is rising.”

At the end of March, 1.07 million housing units remained on the market, up 3.9 percent from February but down 28.2 percent year over year. Unsold inventory clocked in at a 2.1-months supply at the current sales pace, down from a 3.3-months supply in March 2020. Lack of available homes on the market is the single biggest challenge affecting existing sales, a problem that has led many potential buyers to turn instead to homebuilding.

While existing-home sales for condos are up slightly, single-family sales are down 4.3 percent, to 5.3 million in March, as more people look to secure property outside of dense cities. All four regions of the country saw declines in existing sales and double-digit gains in median home prices. The most stark contrast took place in the Northeast, where existing-home sales fell 1.3 percent while the median price rose 21.4 percent to $364,800.

“Without an increase in supply, the society wealth division will widen with homeowners enjoying sizable equity gains while renters will struggle to become homeowners,” Yun said.

Email Veronika Bondarenko

homeselling | NAR
Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
Only 3 days left to register for Inman Connect Las Vegas before prices go up! Don't miss the premier event for real estate pros.Register Now ×
Limited Time Offer: Get 1 year of Inman Select for $199SUBSCRIBE×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×