WASHINGTON (Reuters)—U.S. existing home sales slumped to a 2-1/2 year low in November as the housing market continued to be squeezed by higher mortgage rates.
Existing home sales plunged 7.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million units last month, the lowest level since May 2020, the National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday. Outside the plunge during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020, this was the lowest level since November 2010.
Sales have now declined for 10 straight months, the longest such stretch since 1999. They dropped in all four regions in November. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast home sales would drop to a rate of 4.20 million units.
House resales, which account for a big chunk of U.S. home sales, tumbled 35.4% on a year-on-year basis in November.
The Federal Reserve’s fastest interest rate-hiking cycle since the 1980s has had the most impact on housing. The U.S. central bank is seeking to slow unacceptably high inflation by bringing down demand for everything from housing to labor.
Reports this week showed confidence among homebuilders dropping for a record 12th straight month in December, while single-family homebuilding and permits tumbled to a 2-1/2-year low in November.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage surged to above 7% a few months ago, the highest since 2002, according to data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac. Though the rate has since retreated to 6.31% last…
