The report follows another one from the Census Bureau on Wednesday that said new home sales rose 7.4% in March and are up 6% from a year ago. The increase was driven by more affordable homes with the median sales prices dipping down 1.9% to $403,600. That is 7.5% below the price in March of last year.

Many buyers, spooked by rising economic uncertainty, stayed away from the housing market during the start of the crucial spring season.

Sales of previously owned US homes fell in March by the most since 2022 as buyers remained constrained by high mortgage rates and prices.