The [NAR reported that existing home sales were unchanged for September [Marketwatch]](http://www.marketwatch.com/news/print_story.asp?print=1&guid={2C57E2C0-90E5-4B88-A1BB-83A10F5B6C23}&siteid=mktw) at the annual seasonally adjusted rate of 7.28 million homes, the second highest in history. The hurricanes prompted a sharp increase in purchases outside the damaged regions which offset weaker sales levels in other regions.

The median sales price of a US existing home was $212,000, up 13.4% over the prior year. Inventory increased 0.3% to 2.85 million or a 4.7% supply. The NAR interprets inventory as still “relatively lean.” I am a big fan of the charts churned out by [Calculated Risk](http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com), and once again they have created an excellent graphic – this time covering inventory.

So existing homes sales, which is about 10x the number of new housing starts and therefore more telling of the overall housing market condition, was at a record level but did not see gains. At the same time, rising inventory appears to be gaining momentum. This should temper price appreciation in the coming months.

Other Related[Existing Homes: Sales Strong, Inventories Rise Seasonally [Calculated Risk]](http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com/2005/10/existing-homes-sales-strong.html)[Sept existing home sales flat [Reuters]](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051025/bs_nm/economy_existinghomes_dc_2)