Existing home sales surge as interest rates point higher

By ALEX VEIGA
AP Business Writer

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes bounced back in September to their strongest pace since January as worries about higher mortgage rates motivated buyers to get off the sidelines. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that existing homes sales rose 7% last month from August to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 6.29 million units. Sales were down 2.3% from September last year. The median home prices jumped to $352,800, a 13.3% increase from September last year. At the end of September, the inventory of unsold homes stood at just 1.27 million homes for sale, down 0.8% the previous month and down 13% from a year ago. At the current sales pace, that amounts to a 2.4 months’ supply, the NAR said.