August existing-home sales fell 2% to a 3.98 million annual pace.
Why it matters: Housing is still a key read on consumer demand, lender activity and household wealth. The latest report also reinforces the affordability squeeze feeding into inflation and rate expectations.
- Sales fell 2.0% from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million, the weakest pace in over a year.
- Compared with August 2025, sales were down 1.2%, though they were still up 1.6% for the first eight months of 2026.
- The median existing-home price hit $429,100, up 1.6% from a year earlier and an August record in data going back to 1999.
- Inventory rose to 1.62 million unsold homes, equal to a 4.9-month supply and the highest level in more than 10 years.
The National Association of Realtors said existing-home sales declined for a third straight month in August, underscoring how higher borrowing costs and stubborn prices continue to suppress demand. The report, published Sept. 10, showed the annualized pace slipping to 3.98 million homes, the weakest reading in more than a year. NAR's August report
Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, said, “It’s not a surprise home sales and mortgage rates move in the opposite direction and we have seen mortgage rates rising, rising, rising from February.”
Prices kept climbing even as demand cooled. NAR said the median existing-home sales price reached $429,100 in August, an all-time August high in data going back to 1999 and 1.6% above a year earlier.
Supply also continued to build. The month ended with 1.62 million unsold existing homes on the market, a 4.9-month supply, the highest level in more than 10 years.
First-time buyers made up 30% of purchases, up from 29% in July and 28% a year earlier, but still below the historical norm of about 40%.
Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, said, “It’s not a good time to sell your home.”
Reporting around the release said the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.76% in early September, the highest in more than 14 months. NAR's existing-home sales page is here.
By the numbers
- 3.98 million - August seasonally adjusted annual rate of existing-home sales
- 4.9 months - inventory supply at the end of August, the highest in more than 10 years
- 30% - share of purchases from first-time buyers in August, below the roughly 40% historical norm
Yes, but: Sales were still up 1.6% for the first eight months of 2026 versus the same period in 2025, so the slowdown is not uniform across the year.