Credit: MGNLOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in October, the first annual gain in more than three years, with home shoppers encouraged by easing rates and a pickup in properties on the market. Existing home sales rose 3.4% last month, from September, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.96 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. That’s matches the annual pace set in July. Sales rose 2.9% compared with October last year, representing the first year-over-year gain since July 2021. Home prices increased on an annual basis for the 16th consecutive month. The national median sales price rose 4% from a year earlier, to $407,200.