Dive Brief:
- Existing-home sales in March came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.59 million, a shade below February and a level they had been above since July 2012.
- Regionally, sales were up in the Northeast and Midwest but down in the South and West, making the overall national picture a wash.
- First-time buyers accounted for 30% of the sales, up from 28% in February and right where they were last year because of low inventory and tight credit, the National Association of Realtors said.
Dive Insight:
Realtors want to see more inventory to encourage more sales. They noted that getting more new-home inventory on the market could encourage people to move up from starter homes to bigger ones, and that would put more lower-priced houses on the market for first-time buyers.