After falling 11.4% month-over-month in April, new home sales in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of about 689,000, an increase of 6.7% compared with a revised 646,000 the previous month and an increase of 14.1% compared with 604,000 in May 2017, according to estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The median sales price of new home sold in May was $313,000. The average sales price was $368,500.
As of the end of the month, there were about 299,000 new homes available for sale in the U.S. That about a 5.2-month supply at the current sales rate.
Just as with existing home sales, new home sales are being held back by a lack of inventory and rising home prices.
One reason builders are having a hard time bringing more new homes into the pipeline is rising lumber costs. In a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), more than 40% of builders said rising construction costs are causing home buyers to hold back from purchasing a new home, and more than 90% said that lumber prices specifically are hurting affordability.
