Sales of new single-family houses in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 295,000, according to estimates released jointly by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This figure is 2.3% below the revised July rate of 302,000, but is 6.1% above the August 2010 estimate of 278,000.
The median sales price of new single-family houses sold last month was $209,100; the average sales price was $246,000. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of August was 162,000. This represents a supply of 6.6 months at the current sales rate.
Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, responded to the new data with disappointment.
‘The number of foreclosed homes on the market continues to pose major challenges, not just to builders who have to compete against that low-priced product, but also to buyers who need to sell an existing home before trading up to a new one,’ says Nielsen. ‘As the price data show, entry-level homes are generally driving the new-home market right now, and that's because first-time buyers don't have another home they have to sell.’