New home sales in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of about 618,000, down 0.6% compared with a revised rate of about 622,000 in January but an increase of 0.5% compared with about 615,000 in February 2017, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The median sales price of new single-family home sold in February was $326,800. The average sales price was $376,700.
As of the end of February there were about 305,000 new homes available for sale nationwide, about a 5.9-month supply at the current sales rate.
“New home sales are at a steady level, which is consistent with our measures of solid builder confidence in the housing market,” says Randy Noel, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), in a statement. “As housing demand grows, builders need to manage increasing costs for labor, lots and building materials to keep their homes competitively priced.”
“The recent upward revisions to the sales numbers reflect our forecast for a gradual strengthening of the single-family housing sector in 2018,” says Robert Dietz, chief economist for NAHB. “Demographic tailwinds point to higher demand for single-family homes in the months ahead. Combined with solid job market data, we expect more consumers to enter the housing market this year.”
Regionally, new home sales rose 19.4% in the Northeast and 9% in the South. Sales decreased 3.7% in the Midwest and 17.6% in the West.