Despite Northeast Gains, New Home Sales Fall in October

An uptick in new home sales in the Northeast and Midwest did not result in positive news overall has new home sales dropped more than five percent in October.

Sales of new single-family homes declined 5.3 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000, according to the Commerce Department.

“The drop in new home sales last month comes as no surprise, “said NAHB Chairman Sandy Dunn. “Housing starts in October and NAHB’s most recent Housing Market Index, which gauges builder sentiment about the market, were at record lows. And the extreme turmoil in the financial markets in October definitely undermined consumer confidence and served as a drag on demand for housing.”

The median sales price of new houses sold in October was $218,000; the average sales price was $272,300. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of October was 381,000. This represents a supply of 11.1 months at the current sales rate.

Regionally, new home sales declined 18 percent in the West and six percent in the South in October. Sales in the Northeast increased by 22.6 percent from an unusually low rate the previous month, and sales in the Midwest increased by six percent.

Sources: Commerce Department, NAHB