Existing Home Sales Show August Slide, Prices Still Rising

U.S. existing-home sales fell 1.8% in August from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.05 million, according to the National Association of Realtors. Compared with a year earlier, sales declined 5.3%. That was the first drop in five months. Economists had forecast sales to reach a 5.2 million annual rate. The report showed that sales in July reached 5.14 million instead of the initially reported 5.15 million. As for prices, the median existing-home price for all housing types in August was $219,800, which is 4.8% above August 2013. TheStreet's Gregg Greenberg reports.