US existing home sales rose 1.1 percent in March
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. sales of existing homes increased 1.1 percent on a monthly basis in March, which suggests that buyers are undeterred by the dwindling number of properties available on the market.
The National Association of Realtors says that homes sold last month at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 5.60 million, up from 5.54 million in February. This sales rate is higher than the 2017 total, but March sales were down slightly over the past 12 months.
The housing market continues to be in the grip of an inventory crunch that has restricted how many people can become homeowners. There were just 1.67 million homes for sale in March, a 7.2 percent decline from a year ago.
The median sales price has risen 5.