Sales of existing homes rose in August.

[Nick Gromicko]

Existing-home sales rose in August following a big correction in July, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 7.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million in August from an upwardly revised 3.84 million in July. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $178,600 in August, up 0.8 percent from a year ago. Distressed homes rose to 34 percent of sales in August from 32 percent in July; they were 31 percent in August 2009. Total housing inventory at the end of August slipped 0.6 percent to 3.98 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 11.6-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 12.5-month supply in July. Single-family home sales rose 7.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.62 million in August from a level of 3.37 million in July.

[Michael Larson]

Let's not get too excited.

The chart below shows since 2006, The scale is in millions.

The far right of the chart is todays released numbers of 4.13 million closed sales.

Interactive Chart Here

[Greg Bell]

Things sure have improved in September. This is going to be my best month this year. I expect the rest of the year to be just as good since inspectors that are not contractors now have an even playing field.