Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in November to their fastest pace since March with home shoppers encouraged by a wider selection of properties on the market, even as mortgage rates mostly ticked higher.

Existing home sales rose 4.8% last month, from October, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.15 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.

Sales accelerated 6.1% compared with November last year, representing the biggest year-over-year gain since June 2021. The latest home sales topped the 4.1 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.

Home prices increased on an annual basis for the 17th consecutive month. The national median sales price rose 4.7% from a year earlier, to $406,100.

Despite increasing in November and October, home sales are still running below last year's pace, when they sank to a nearly 30-year low.

"Looks like we won't match last year in terms of the annual total, so it will be the lowest home sales since 1995," said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist.

Elevated mortgage rates and high prices have kept homeownership out of reach for many prospective buyers. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage slipped to just above 6% in September following the Federal Reserve's decision to cut its main interest rate for the first time in more than four years. But it has mostly risen since then.

Homebuyers who could afford to buy benefited from a pickup in the homes that are available. There were 1.33 million unsold homes at the end of last month, down 2.9% from October, but up 17.7% from November last year, NAR said.

That translates to a 3.8-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 4.2-month pace at the end of October last year, but up from 3.5-month pace in November last year. Traditionally, a 5- to 6-month supply is considered a balanced market between buyers and sellers.