Global| Apr 24 2018U.S. New Home Sales and Prices Strengthen
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Sales of new single-family homes during March increased 4.0% (8.8% y/y) to 694,000 (SAAR) following a 3.6% February gain to 667,000, revised from 618,000. Expectations had been for 620,000 sales in the Action Economics Forecast [...]
Sales of new single-family homes during March increased 4.0% (8.8% y/y) to 694,000 (SAAR) following a 3.6% February gain to 667,000, revised from 618,000. Expectations had been for 620,000 sales in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Despite the recently strong increases, sales remained slightly below the expansion peak of 711,000 reached in November.
The median price of a new home improved 3.5% (4.8% y/y) to $337,200 from $325,800, revised from $326,800. It was the highest price in three months. The average price of a new home eased 0.2% (-3.8% y/y) to $369,900.
Changes in new home sales were mixed last month across the country. In the Northeast, sales declined by more than one-half m/m (-52.5% y/y) to 19,000 reflecting adverse weather conditions. Sales in the Midwest declined 2.4% both m/m and y/y to 82,000 after a 1.2% m/m rise. Offsetting these declines, sales in the West jumped 28.3% (24.7% y/y) to 222,000, a roughly twelve year-high. Sales in the South inched 0.8% higher (10.4% y/y) following an 11.9% decline.
The months' supply of homes on the market declined m/m to 5.2 and has been moving irregularly sideways since 2012. The median number of months a new home was on the market remained low at 3.8, up slightly during the last nine months.
The data in this report are available in Haver's USECON database. The consensus expectation figure from Action Economics is available in the AS1REPNA database.
| U.S. New Single-Family Home Sales (SAAR, 000s) | Mar | Feb | Jan | Mar Y/Y % | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 694 | 667 | 644 | 8.8 | 617 | 561 | 503 |
| Northeast | 19 | 42 | 35 | -52.5 | 39 | 32 | 25 |
| Midwest | 82 | 84 | 83 | -2.4 | 72 | 69 | 61 |
| South | 371 | 368 | 329 | 10.4 | 341 | 317 | 286 |
| West | 222 | 173 | 197 | 24.7 | 165 | 142 | 130 |
| Median Price (NSA, $) | 337,200 | 325,800 | 325,900 | 4.8 | 321,367 | 306,500 | 293,733 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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