"Persistent news of rising home prices should help the recovery...as selling conditions continue to improve and sellers become more confident they can get bids closer to the price they are offering"
- Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse
Sales of previously owned homes in the world's biggest economy fell last month, as there were fewer homes available for sale, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. Existing-home sales dropped 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.75 million, compared to 4.83 million in August. At the same time, construction of new homes soared 15%, reaching the highest level since July 2008.
"Persistent news of rising home prices should help the recovery...as selling conditions continue to improve and sellers become more confident they can get bids closer to the price they are offering," said Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse.
"There are a lot of reasons to be positive on housing," said Tom Simons, an economist at Jefferies Group Inc. in New York, who correctly projected the drop. "If housing prices continue to rise, people are incentivized to get off the sidelines. It all sets up for continued improvement."
The Standard & Poor's 500 erased 0.24 per cent to 1,457.34. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged lower 0.06 per cent to 13,548.94. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.10 per cent to 3,104.12.
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