Photo credit: APUS home sales reported a month-on-month decline of 2.4% in June, Thursday, due to an increase of 1.8% in the median sales price from a year earlier, news agency AP reported. However, the sales rose 2.8% when compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.The National Association of Realtors said the seasonally adjusted annual rate was 4.09 million units. However, according to FactSet, the number fell short of economists’ estimate of 4.21 million.The annual pace of home sales has been following the 2023 number, hovering close to 4 million, however, it significantly falls short of the historic norm that is closer to 5.2-million.Sales have remained muted this year due to rising mortgage rates, especially in the months since the spring as the war between the US and Iran began raising expectations of higher inflation. However, the rates remain lower than what was reported last year. In May, the home prices continued to rise.High mortgage rates fules sales slumpHome prices have risen annually for 36 consecutive months, according to a news report by PBS. Since 2022, when mortgage rates started to rise from pandemic-era lows, the US housing market has been in a slump. Last year, sales of previously inhabited US homes remained largely unchanged at a 30-year low.Seasonally adjusted sales of existing US homes have increased by just 0.7% through the first half of this year when compared to the same period in 2025.According to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, many of the properties bought last month were probably under contract in April and May, when the average rate on a 30-year mortgage ranged from 6.23% to 6.53%, the highest level since late August.