Nationally, existing home sales ?EUR??,,????'??? including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops ?EUR??,,????'??? declined 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.91 million units in August from an upwardly revised pace of 5.02 million in July, but are 10.7 percent below the 5.5 million-unit pace in August 2007.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the recent drop in interest rates is an immediate impact of recent government action.

?EUR??,,????'??August sales reflect higher interest rates before the government takeover of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, and the sudden drop in mortgage interest rates over the past couple weeks is improving housing affordability,?EUR??,,????'?? he said. ?EUR??,,????'??With higher loan limits and a beefing up of the FHA program, all the mechanisms have been falling into place to increase mortgage availability.

The national median existing home price for all housing types was $203,100 in August, down 9.5 percent from a year ago when the median was $224,400.

Total housing inventory at the end of August fell seven percent to 4.26 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 10.4-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a revised 10.9-month supply in July.

Single-family home sales slipped 1.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.35 million in August from an upwardly revised pace of 4.41 million in July, but are 9.6 percent below the 4.81 million-unit level a year ago. The median existing single-family home price was $201,900 in August, down 9.7 percent from August 2007.

Existing condominium and co-op sales dropped 8.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 560,000 units in August from an upwardly revised level of 610,000 in July, and are 19 percent below the 691,000-unit pace in August 2007. The median existing condo price was $212,600 in August, which is 7.2 percent below a year ago.

Regionally, existing home sales in the Midwest rose 0.9 percent in August to a pace of 1.14 million but are 12.3 percent below August 2007. The median price in the Midwest was $168,000, down 5.6 percent from a year ago.

In the South, existing home sales increased 0.5 percent to an annual pace of 1.86 million in August, but are 15.1 percent below a year ago. The median price in the South was $176,500, which is 3.4 percent lower than August 2007.

Existing home sales in the West fell 5.3 percent to an annual rate of 1.07 million in August, but are 4.9 percent higher than August 2007. The median price in the West was $251,600, down 23.9 percent from a year ago. ?EUR??,,????'??The highest concentration of foreclosures is in the West, which is weighing down the median price because many buyers are taking advantage of deeply discounted prices,?EUR??,,????'?? Yun said.

In the Northeast, existing home sales dropped 6.6 percent to an annual pace of 850,000 in August, and are 15 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Northeast was $271,000, down 3.8 percent from August 2007.