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WASHINGTON—Sales of previously owned U.S. homes declined in September, a sign that high prices and slim inventory continue to weigh on the housing sector despite low interest rates, strong employment and firmer wage growth.

Existing-home sales fell 2.2% in September from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.38 million, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expected sales declined 0.7% last month.

“The housing market is in an unbalanced situation” with soaring prices and persistent low inventory, said Lawrence Yun, the trade group’s chief economist.

Compared with a year earlier, sales in September rose 3.9%. Purchases of previously owned homes account for the bulk of U.S. home-buying. August’s sales were revised up slightly to a 5.50 million pace from an earlier estimate of a 5.49 annual pace.

The housing market’s weakness has come despite many favorable conditions for potential buyers. Mortgage rates have been dropping steadily in recent months. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at the end of September was 3.64%, down from about 4% six months earlier, according to Freddie Mac.

Still, a shortage of homes for sale in some areas means home prices remain high. The median sale price for an existing home in September was $272,100, up 5.9% from a year earlier. That marked 91 straight months of year-over-year price gains and the strongest pace of appreciation since January 2018. There was a 4.1 month-supply of homes on the market at the end of September, based on the current sales pace.

News Corp., owner of The Wall Street Journal, also operates Realtor.com under license from the National Association of Realtors.

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