US existing-home sales jumped a surprisingly strong 7.2% in July, setting a four-month rally for the first time in five years, the US National Association of Realtors said today.
Existing-home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million units in July from a pace of 4.89 million in June, NAR said in a statement.
'The monthly sales gain was the largest on record for the total existing-home sales series dating back to 1999,' it said.
Sales far outstripped the average consensus forecast of a rate of 5.0 million units.
On an annual basis, sales were 5.0% higher than the 4.99 million-unit rate in July 2008.
NAR noted that the last time sales rose for four consecutive months was in June 2004, and the last time sales were higher than a year earlier was November 2005.
'The housing market has decisively turned for the better,' Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said in the statement.
'A combination of first-time buyers taking advantage of the housing stimulus tax credit and greatly improved affordability conditions are contributing to higher sales,' he said.
