(Kitco News) - The U.S. housing market continues to stabilize as sales of existing homes increased for the third consecutive month; however, the National Association of Realtors warned consumers that affordable housing remains a risk.
Total existing-home sales—including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops—increased 0.5% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million, the NAR announced Friday. The sales pace rose roughly in line with expectations.
Existing-home sales are down 1% from last year, the report said.
Although the U.S. housing market is improving, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said he is concerned about the fall in the supply of homes for sale.
The report said inventory stands at 1.43 million units, down 5.9% from October, representing roughly a four-month supply.
“Inventory growth is beginning to stall. With distressed property sales at historic lows and housing wealth at an all-time high, homeowners are in no rush to list their properties during the winter months,” said Yun. "Wage growth is outpacing home price gains, which improves housing affordability. Still, future affordability could be hampered if housing supply fails to keep pace with demand."
The gold market is not seeing any significant reaction to the benign housing sales report. The precious metal continues to quietly push higher, looking to end the week at a fresh all-time high. Spot gold last traded at $4,342.50 an ounce, up 1% from last Friday.
Weakness in the housing market has been a drag on the U.S. economy for most of the year. However, economists expect housing sales to pick up as the Federal Reserve continues to cut interest rates through 2026.
While falling interest rates are pushing mortgage rates lower, housing prices remain elevated due to dwindling supplies.
The report said the median existing-home price for all housing types was $404,400, up 1.2% from one year ago.
