The U.S.
Commerce Department announced on Monday that the sales of new single-family
homes fell 0.3 per cent m-o-m to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 662,000
units in February. This marked the first drop in three months.
Economists
had predicted a sales pace of 675,000 last month.
The January sales
pace was revised up to 664,000 units from the originally reported 661,000
units.
According to
the report, new home sales in the South, the largest area, jumped by 3.7 per
cent m-o-m in February to 367,000, and new home sales in the West climbed 2.3 per cent m-o-m to
175,000. Meanwhile, new home sales in the Northeast plunged by 31.5 per cent m-o-m to 37,000, and new
home sales in the Midwest declined by 2.4 per cent m-o-m to 83,000.
Compared to February
2023, new home sales surged by 5.9 per cent.
The report also
revealed that the median sales price plunged by 7.6 per cent y-o-y to $400,500 in
February, while the average sales price decreased by 2.8 per cent y-o-y to $485,000.