Global| Sep 24 2015U.S. New Home Sales Reach 2008 High
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
New home sales during August climbed 5.7% last month to 552,000 units (SAAR) from 522,000 during July, revised from 507,000. It was the highest level of sales since February 2008. Sales of 515,000 were expected in the Action Economics [...]
New home sales during August climbed 5.7% last month to 552,000 units (SAAR) from 522,000 during July, revised from 507,000. It was the highest level of sales since February 2008. Sales of 515,000 were expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey.
The median price for a new single-family home inched 0.5% higher to $292,700 after an upwardly revised 5.9% July rise. The y/y gain of 0.3% was well below the increases of roughly 10.0% per year from 2012-to-2014. The average price of a new single-family home increased 2.5% to $353,400, down 0.8% y/y.
Sales increased m/m in three of the four regions of the country. Sales in the Northeast rose nearly one-quarter m/m to 36,000, the highest level since May of last year. In the West, sales posted a 5.4% rise (10.0% y/y) to 137,000, but remained well below the 145,000 peak reached in January. Sales in the South gained 7.4% and were up roughly one-third y/y. Last month's sales level of 319,000 was the highest in six months. In the Midwest, new home sales declined 9.1% to 60,000, down for the third month in the last four and unchanged y/y.
The number of new homes for sale increased 0.5% (5.4% y/y) to 216,000, the most since early-2010. The median number of months-for-sale held steady m/m at 3.7 versus 3.1 months one year ago. That was down from 14.0 months late in 2009. The months supply at the current sales rate was 4.7, the lowest in six months and below last year's high of 6.1 months.
The data in this report are available in Haver's USECON database. The consensus expectation figure from the Action Economics survey is available in the AS1REPNA database.
| U.S. New Single-Family Home Sales (SAAR, 000s) | Aug | Jul | Jun | Aug Y/Y % | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 552 | 522 | 466 | 25.0 | 439 | 429 | 369 |
| Northeast | 36 | 29 | 28 | 0.0 | 28 | 30 | 28 |
| Midwest | 60 | 66 | 59 | 0.0 | 60 | 62 | 48 |
| South | 319 | 297 | 263 | 31.6 | 244 | 232 | 194 |
| West | 137 | 130 | 116 | 10.0 | 108 | 106 | 97 |
| Median Price (NSA, $) | 292,700 | 291,100 | 274,800 | 0.3 | 283,775 | 265,092 | 242,108 |
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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