Existing Home Sales Exceed Estimates

- Existing Home Sales for August fell to 6.3M versus estimates of 6.2M and 6.33M in July.

BOTTOM LINE: Sales of previously owned home in the US exceeded estimates in August, Bloomberg reported. The median sales price fell 1.7% to $225,000 from a year earlier. The supply of months for sale rose to 7.5 months versus 7.3 months in July. Purchases fell 2.3% in the West and .8% in the South. Sales rose .7% in the Midwest and 1.9% in the Northeast. I continue to believe housing will begin stabilizing over the next few months after only modest price declines which would be considered a soft-landing. The overall negative effects of housing on the US economy are being mostly offset by other very positive factors.