US existing home sales rise

South of the border figures from the National Association of Realtors show that sales of existing homes increased in December by 2.4 per cent.

South of the border figures from the National Association of Realtors show that sales of existing homes increased in December by 2.4 per cent. While the data shows some positive movement for the market the annual figures are not so good. There was a drop in sales year-over-year by 3.1 per cent, marking the first annual drop since 2010. Analysts expect things to pick up though with lower mortgage rates and softer lending regulations showing signs of improving sales especially among first-time buyers.