Existing-home sales fall in November

An open house is posted in front of a home for sale in Westfield, Ind., Friday, Sept. 25, 2020. The market for existing homes cooled slightly in November, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020 after climbing through the late spring, summer and early fall despite the pandemic. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
An open house is posted in front of a home for sale in Westfield, Ind., Friday, Sept. 25, 2020. The market for existing homes cooled slightly in November, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020 after climbing through the late spring, summer and early fall despite the pandemic. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The market for existing homes cooled slightly in November, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday, after climbing through the late spring, summer and early fall despite the pandemic.

Existing-home sales fell 2.5% between October and November on a seasonally adjusted basis, to 6.69 million annualized units. That's the first decline in that figure since May, when housing market activity started recovering from the coronavirus lockdowns of March and April.

Once the lockdowns were lifted, the housing market took off, fueled by record-low mortgage rates that helped with home affordability. Thousands of families affected by the stay-at-home orders sought homes that were better attuned for working at home. Suburbs were among the biggest beneficiaries.

Before the November decline, existing home sales were on a pace not seen in 15 years.

Sales of existing homes were still up 25.8% from a year earlier, the trade association said. The average sale price of a home was $310,800 in November, up 14.6% from a year earlier, on a non-seasonally adjusted basis.

The average length of time a home was on the market remained at 21 days, the same as in October. That is down from 38 days a year earlier, a sign that supply issues continue to affect both home prices and sales.

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