New Home Sales Flat in May Jun 25, 2009

Printable format  Email this Article  Search

Sales of newly built, single-family homes in May held virtually even with the previous month, declining less than one percentage point to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 342,000 units, according to the U.S. Commerce Department.

New-home sales declined 0.6% from April (revised to 344,000) to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 342,000 units in May. The number is 32.8% below May 2008's estimate of 509,000. Meanwhile, the number of new homes for sale fell 2.3% to 292,000, which is a 10.2-month supply at the current sales pace.

Regionally, the decline in new-home sales was entirely focused on the South, where sales fell 8.5% for the month. Meanwhile, sales of new homes gained 1.3% in the West and posted double-digit gains of 28.6% and 18.6% in the Northeast and Midwest, respectively.

Back to Daily News