The U.S.
Commerce Department reported on Wednesday that the sales of new single-family
homes climbed by 7.4 per cent m-o-m to a seasonally adjusted annual rate
of 724,000 units in March. This was the highest reading since September 2024 (726,000).
Economists
had anticipated a sales pace of 680,000 last month.
The February sales
pace was revised downward to 674,000 units from the originally reported 676,000 units.
According to
the report, new home sales in the South, the largest area, surged by 13.6 per
cent m-o-m in March to 483,000. In addition, new home sales
in the Midwest advanced by 3.0 per cent m-o-m to 69,000. Meanwhile, new home
sales in the Northeast plummeted by 22.2 per cent m-o-m to 28,000, and those in
the West fell by 1.4
per cent m-o-m to 144,000.
Compared to March
2024, new home sales jumped by 6.0 per cent.
The report also
showed that the median sales price declined by 7.5 per cent y-o-y to $403,600 in
March, while the average sales price decreased by 4.7 per cent y-o-y to $497,700.