US home sales fell 0.4 percent in May amid inventory crunch

WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. existing home sales slipped 0.4 percent in May, as the prolonged shortage of properties on the market is deterring home-buying.

The National Association of Realtors says homes sold at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 5.43 million in May, the second straight monthly decline.

The number of sales listings has dropped 6.1 percent over the past year to 1.85 million. That forced would-be buyers to act quickly and sign contracts on average in just 26 days.

Because of declining inventories, sales of homes worth less than $250,000 have declined over the past year. But in a sign of greater income inequality, sales of homes worth more than $1 million have surged 14.4 percent this year.

The median sales price in May rose 4.9 percent from a year ago to $264,800.