(Bloomberg) — Sales of previously owned homes slumped inNovember to the lowest level since April of last year as a changein industry rules lengthened the amount of time it took buyers toclose on a deal.
Closings on existing homes, which usually take place a month ortwo after a contract is signed, declined 10.5% to a 4.76 millionannual rate after a revised 5.32 million pace in October, theNational Association of Realtors said Tuesday. November sales wereweaker than the most pessimistic forecast in a Bloombergsurvey.
“November home sales without a doubt were heavily impacted by anew federal government rule regarding closing documents,” LawrenceYun, NAR chief economist, said in a news conference as the figureswere released, adding that sales may rebound this month. “Buyinginterest is there, it’s just that closings are not happening on atimely basis.”
Continue Reading for Free
Register and gain access to:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
