Existing Home Sales can boost our economy and create a favorable long-term economic outlook. Here is what you need to know.

What is the Existing Home Sales report? The Existing Home Sales report measures sales of pre-owned single-family homes, condos and co-ops, as reported by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). It covers geographical numbers, prices, inventory and the number of months it would take to deplete the existing supply of pre-owned houses.

What’s happened recently? Following two straight monthly declines, sales started picking up in September, largely driven by first-time homebuyers. In October, NAR reported Existing Home Sales hit a 9.5-year high, rising 2 percent from September to an annual rate of 5.6 million. Sales are up nearly 6 percent from October 2015.

What’s the bottom line? Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, noted in NAR’s October Existing Home Sales news release that, “October’s strong sales gain was widespread throughout the country and can be attributed to the release of the unrealized pent-up demand that held back many would-be buyers over the summer because of tight supply.” Yun also said, “The ramp-up in housing starts in October is a hopeful sign that overall supply can steadily increase enough to provide more choices for buyers and also moderate price growth.”

I’ll continue to monitor economic reports closely, but if you have any immediate questions, please call or email today.