Existing home sales stall in August amid higher mortgage rates

Core Insights - Sales of previously owned homes were flat in August, totaling 4 million units on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, reflecting a 0.2% decrease from July but a 1.8% increase from August of the previous year [1] - The upper end of the housing market is performing better than the lower end, with homes priced above $1 million seeing an 8% year-over-year increase, while homes priced below $100,000 experienced a decline of over 10% [2] - The Midwest region outperformed others in August, benefiting from affordable market conditions, with median home prices in the Midwest being 22% below the national median [3] Sales Performance - August sales of previously owned homes were stable at 4 million units, marking a slight decrease from July and a year-over-year increase [1] - The Midwest region showed the strongest sales performance, while the Northeast was the weakest [1][3] Market Trends - The upper end of the market is thriving due to record-high housing wealth and stock market performance, enabling current homeowners to trade up [2][3] - The lack of inventory is constraining sales of affordable homes, impacting the lower end of the market [3]