By Ruth Mantell
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Existing-home sales declined 0.6% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.92 million, as longer-term trends posted substantial gains, pointing to a continuing recovery, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday. Sales of existing homes in March were 10.3% higher than during the same period in the prior year. Meanwhile, median prices hit $184,300 in March, up 11.8% from the same period in the prior year, the largest year-over-year price growth since November 2005. Low inventory is supporting prices. Also, sales of higher priced homes have seen large gains over the past year, as distressed-home sales have decreased. Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected a pace of 5.03 million existing-home sales for March, compared with an original estimate of a 4.98 million rate in February. On Monday, NAR revised February's rate to 4.95 million. Inventories rose 1.6% in March to 1.93 million existing homes for sale. The months' supply rose to 4.7 in March from 4.6 in February.
