February sales increased from an upwardly-revised January total
Sales of newly-built single-family homes continued their upward trajectory in February according to figures from the HUD and US Census Bureau.
Sales totaled 667,000 on a seasonally-adjusted basis, rising from an upwardly-adjusted January figure to the highest level since March 2018. The report was delayed due to the government shutdown.
Lower mortgage rates certainly helped boost sales but buyers are keen to find homes in an affordable price range with those in the $200,000 to $400,000 range and a median of $315,300, 3.6% below that of a year earlier.
“The new home sales data continue to show potential to grow sales at affordable price points that would be attractive for the entry-level buyer,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “However, builders need to be mindful of housing costs as they try to meet this demand.”
Regionally, and on a monthly basis, new home sales rose 26.9% in the Northeast, 28.3% in Midwest and 1.8% in the South. The West remained unchanged.
6-month trend
LendingTree chief economist Tendayi Kapfidze said that the New Home Sales data is “always messy” and that the Census Bureau notes in the release that “it takes 6 months to establish a trend for new houses sold” as they are among the most volatile and revision prone economic data series.
“At LendingTree we prefer the 3-month average to balance timeliness with information value. The 3-month average of 630,000 is the highest since June,” he said.
