June 26, 2008
New Single-Family Home Sales Drop 40.3% from May 2007; Prices Dip, Inventory of Unsold Houses Increases
By David M. Kinchen
Huntingtonnews.net Real Estate Writer
Sales of new single-family houses in May 2008 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 512,000, according to estimates released jointly Wednesday, June 25, 2008 by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
This is 2.5 percent below the revised April rate of 525,000 and is 40.3 percent below the May 2007 estimate of 857,000 and is the fifth decline in sales in the past six months.
The median sales price of new houses sold in May 2008 was $231,000, 5.7 percent lower than May 2007; the average sales price was $311,300. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of May was 453,000. This represents a supply of 10.9 months at the current sales rate.
"The fact that new-home sales are occurring at such a slow pace in the middle of the home buying season, with inventories only barely inching downward, is a strong indication of just how critical it is for Congress to move forward immediately with housing stimulus legislation," said National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) President Sandy Dunn, a home builder from Point Pleasant, WV.
A bill that could be voted on in the Senate on Wednesday, June 25 contains the crucial element of a temporary home buyer tax credit, which would help shrink inventories of unsold units and reduce housing's significant drag on economic growth.
"The nation's housing market clearly continues to display fundamental weakness, and today's numbers are in line with what builders have been telling us in our regular surveys," said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. "Home builders have been doing everything they can to limit the production of new units and move existing inventory, but it hasn't been enough to make a significant dent in the backlog yet," he said. "A temporary home buyer tax credit would help release some of the pent-up demand among potential buyers who are holding off on a home purchase in hopes of prices going lower. This, in turn, could provide a significant shot in the arm for the overall economy."
Regionally, sales were down 7.9 percent in the Northeast and 11.6 percent in the West in May. Sales gained 5.1 percent in the Midwest and rose a marginal 0.4 percent in the South.
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New Single-Family Home Sales Drop 40.3% from May 2007; Prices Dip, Inventory of Unsold Houses Increases
By David M. Kinchen
Huntingtonnews.net Real Estate Writer
Sales of new single-family houses in May 2008 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 512,000, according to estimates released jointly Wednesday, June 25, 2008 by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
This is 2.5 percent below the revised April rate of 525,000 and is 40.3 percent below the May 2007 estimate of 857,000 and is the fifth decline in sales in the past six months.
The median sales price of new houses sold in May 2008 was $231,000, 5.7 percent lower than May 2007; the average sales price was $311,300. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of May was 453,000. This represents a supply of 10.9 months at the current sales rate.
"The fact that new-home sales are occurring at such a slow pace in the middle of the home buying season, with inventories only barely inching downward, is a strong indication of just how critical it is for Congress to move forward immediately with housing stimulus legislation," said National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) President Sandy Dunn, a home builder from Point Pleasant, WV.
A bill that could be voted on in the Senate on Wednesday, June 25 contains the crucial element of a temporary home buyer tax credit, which would help shrink inventories of unsold units and reduce housing's significant drag on economic growth.
"The nation's housing market clearly continues to display fundamental weakness, and today's numbers are in line with what builders have been telling us in our regular surveys," said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. "Home builders have been doing everything they can to limit the production of new units and move existing inventory, but it hasn't been enough to make a significant dent in the backlog yet," he said. "A temporary home buyer tax credit would help release some of the pent-up demand among potential buyers who are holding off on a home purchase in hopes of prices going lower. This, in turn, could provide a significant shot in the arm for the overall economy."
Regionally, sales were down 7.9 percent in the Northeast and 11.6 percent in the West in May. Sales gained 5.1 percent in the Midwest and rose a marginal 0.4 percent in the South.
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