US home sales in 2024 fell to the lowest level in nearly 30 years as prices, and mortgages, soar

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell in 2024 to a nearly 30-year low for the second year in a row as elevated mortgage rates, rising home prices and a low level of properties on the market kept many prospective homebuyers out of the market. The National Association of Realtors said Friday that existing U.S. home sales totaled 4.06 million last year, a 0.7% decline from 2023. That is the weakest year for home sales since 1995, echoing the full-year results from 2023. The median national home price for all of last year rose 4.7% to an all-time high $407,500, the NAR said.