US existing home sales drop to two-year low in May, shows data

US existing home sales tumbled to a two-year low in May as prices jumped to a record high — topping the $400,000 mark for the first time — and as mortgage interest rates increased further, sidelining first-time buyers from the market. 

Existing home sales fell 3.4 per cent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.41 million units last month, the lowest level since June 2020 when sales were rebounding from the Covid lockdown slump, the National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday. 

It was the fourth straight monthly sales decline.