U.S. Home Sales Stagnate at 4.02 Million Amid Rising Prices

U.S. home sales in April stubbornly hovered at 4.02 million units, barely edging up 0.2% from March. That's flatlining the housing market during its usual boom season. Not a good look. Economists had their hopes pinned at around 4.12 million, but reality had other plans. We're still miles away from the 5.2 million norm that used to be standard.

Prices aren't doing any favors either. They've climbed 0.9% from last year, hitting a record high for April at $417,700. It's the 34th consecutive month of annual price hikes. Exhaustion sets in. Meanwhile, mortgage rates are bouncing around like a hyperactive child. They were between 5.98% and 6.38% recently, and inflation anxiety's only adding fuel to the fire.

Home inventory, that elusive savior, showed a glimmer of increase with 1.47 million unsold homes by the end of April, a 5.8% rise from March. But here's the thing: we're still short of the pre-pandemic inventory levels of 2 million homes. The market balance is a distant dream. A 4.4-month supply doesn’t cut it. Buyers and sellers are stuck in a standoff.

This ends badly. The data already knows it. Short supply, high prices, and mortgage madness mean the housing market's in a chokehold. For crypto investors eyeing diversification, maybe parking funds in digital assets isn’t the worst idea. Zoom out. No, further. See it now?