Global| May 24 2011U.S. New Home Sales Are Highest This Year
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Total new home sales in April rose 7.3% m/m to 323,000 (AR). The latest figure slightly beat expectations for 303,000 sales according to Action Economics. Despite the latest rise, new home sales still have fallen by three-quarters [...]
Total new home sales in April rose 7.3% m/m to 323,000 (AR). The latest figure slightly beat expectations for 303,000 sales according to Action Economics. Despite the latest rise, new home sales still have fallen by three-quarters from the record 1,258,000 during all of 2005. The rise in April sales was most pronounced in the West where sales rose 15.1% m/m. Gains in other regions were between 4% and 8%.
With the rise in sales, the inventory of unsold homes fell to a 6.5 months supply, its lowest in twelve months. However, it took a median 8.8 months to sell a home since completion, the most since August.
The median price of a new single family home rose 1.6% m/m to $217,900 versus an upwardly revised March level. By region, median home prices were highest in the Northeast at $326,200 followed by $247,300 in the West. In the South home prices averaged $199,200 while in the Midwest they averaged $192,400.
The data in this report are available in Haver's USECON database.
| U.S. New Home Sales | Apr | Mar | Feb | Y/Y % | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (SAAR, 000s) | 323 | 301 | 278 | -23.1 | 321 | 374 | 482 |
| Northeast | 28 | 26 | 18 | -22.2 | 31 | 31 | 35 |
| Midwest | 43 | 41 | 31 | -21.8 | 45 | 54 | 69 |
| South | 168 | 161 | 166 | -24.7 | 173 | 202 | 265 |
| West | 84 | 73 | 63 | -20.8 | 74 | 87 | 113 |
| Median Price (NSA, $) | 217,900 | 214,500 | 217,800 | 4.6 | 221,242 | 214,500 | 230,408 |
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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