By Tom Barkley Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON
New-home sales climbed more than anticipated in July, staging their fourth straight month of strong gains to add to evidence that the housing market is emerging from its long slump. Sales of single-family homes increased by 9.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000 compared to the prior month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That was the highest number sold since September 2008 and well above projections for a 1.6% gain to 390,000 by economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires. The increase was the fifth in seven months, as buyers are returning to the market in search of bargains. The market for new homes appears to have bottomed in January, when sales hit 329,000.
Home construction unexpectedly fell 1% in July, however, according to data released earlier in the month. June new-home sales were revised up to an annual rate of 395,000, a 9.1% increase, Wednesday’s data showed. Originally, the government had reported an 11% jump in June sales to 384,000, though May sales were also revised up to 362, 000 from 346,000. Year over year, July new-home sales were still down 13.4%, however. The market for new homes is expected to continue to lag sales of used homes, where foreclosures have dragged down prices. The median price for a new home was $210,100 in July, down 11.5% from $237,300 the same month a year ago. On a monthly basis, the price edged down 0.1% from $ 210,400 in June. Oversupply has been one factor keeping prices down, though there was significant improvement in that area, as well. The ratio of houses for sale to houses sold in July was 7.5, the lowest level since April 2007 and down from 8.5 the month before. At the end of July, there were an estimated 271,000 homes for sale, the smallest number since March 1993. That compares with 280,000 in June. Regionally last month, new-home sales jumped 32.4% in the Northeast and 16.2% in the South, with sales up 1% in the West. Sales were down 7.6% in the Midwest. An estimated 39,000 homes were actually sold in July, up from 36,000 in June, based on figures not seasonally adjusted.
