Existing Home Sales Jump 5.1%

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 23, 2009 10:00 AM CDT
Existing Home Sales Jump 5.1%
A sold sign is displayed in the yard of a house in Clarksville, Tenn., near the Fort Campbell military base, Oct. 16, 2008.   (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Previously owned home sales took a 5.1% leap in February, to an annual rate of 4.72 million, Bloomberg reports, as a median price down 15.5% year-over-year brought out the bargain hunters. That blindsided analysts, who had expected sales to fall to a 4.45 million annual rate. “The decline in home prices… has increased affordability,” wrote one. ““However, rising unemployment, depressed confidence, and expectations of home-price depreciation serve as powerful offsets.” (More existing home sales stories.)

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