The Commerce Department’s Census Bureau said Friday that new home sales fell 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 745,000 units. Sales rose to 758,000 units in November from 656,000 in October. The data was delayed last year due to the government shutdown.
New home sales make up a small portion of US home sales and are volatile on a month-to-month basis. They are considered when signing the contract. New home sales rose 3.8% on a year-over-year basis in December.
New housing inventory fell to 472,000 units in December from 485,000 units in November. The inventory of homes under construction was the lowest in nearly 4-1/2 years. At December’s sales pace, it will take 7.6 months to complete the supply of new homes on the market, down from 7.7 months in November.
The median price of a new home rose 4.2% to $414,400 in December from a year earlier.
The housing market could get a lift from mortgage rates. The average rate on a popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.01% this week, the lowest level since September 2022, from 6.09% last week, data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac showed.
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