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Jun 23, 2009, 16:19 GMT

US housing sales rise in May, but prices still falling sharply

Washington - Sales of existing homes in the US rose in May, marking the first back-to-back monthly gain since September 2005, but falling prices could yet delay a housing recovery critical to the health of the wider economy, a US industry group said Tuesday. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said home sales rose 2.4 per cent in May to an annual rate of 4.77 million. But prices were down 16.8 per cent compared to May 2008. 'We need to have increased sales to stabilize prices,' NAR economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. He also warned that realtors in the US were having trouble appraising houses in the current uncertain climate. 'There is danger of a delayed housing market recovery and a further rise in foreclosures if the appraisal problems are not quickly corrected,' Yun said. The US housing downturn lies at the centre of the global financial crisis. A dramatic fall in prices since 2006 caused a record number of foreclosures, which cost financial firms in the US and Europe hundreds of billions of dollars and prompted some to declare bankruptcy. About one third of homes sold in May were foreclosures, the NAR said. But that is down from nearly 50 per cent earlier this year.

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