December Existing Home Sales Up 5%

Existing home sales rose 5% in the month of December according to the National Association of Realtors to end the year totaling 4.26 million home sales vs. 4.19 million the previous year.
The increase in home sales comes as no surprise to me since November pending home sales, which are contracts to purchase, soared to their highest levels in almost 2 years.
The median sales price rose 2.3% Nationally to $164,500 with First time Buyers making up 31% of all home sales last month.

I expect a slight dip in sales for the month of January and possibly February before a significant increase through the spring/summer season which will lead many economists to call a bottom in housing (after the fact).

If you are thinking about buying, this may be the best opportunity to do so before the above mentioned economists call for open season in real estate.