of Realtors said Tuesday that sales of existing homes rose 2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.6 million. Sales gains could slow in the coming months as rising mortgage rates are making home loans more expensive. Falling mortgage rates helped boost sales for much of the year, but rates surged after this month's presidential election. The shortage has pushed up the median sales price of existing homes 6% from a year ago to $232,200. The low mortgage rates helped buyers with solid credit, although tighter lending standards appears to have hurt potential sales.

Source: Los Angeles Times November 22, 2016 16:33 UTC