Home Sales On The Rise? Good News Emerging on Real Estate

The number of newly built single-family homes on the market shrank 4.2% to 297,000 units in April, thinning supplies to their lowest level since May 2001, according to figures released by the Commerce Department on May 28. The report noted that April’s pace of new-home sales held virtually even with the previous month, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 352,000 units.

“The fact that the new-homes inventory is now below the 300,000 mark shows that builders have made substantial progress in winnowing down their backlogs to a much more comfortable level,” noted NAHB Chairman Joe Robson.

April was the 24th consecutive month in which the number of unsold new homes declined.

“This continued reduction in the new-homes inventory helps bring supply in line with demand, which is an important step toward the market’s recovery. We can expect the pace of new home sales to bounce along the bottom a bit before picking back up towards the end of this quarter,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe.

Sales of newly built, single-family homes climbed a marginal 0.3% to 352,000 units in April from a downwardly revised pace in March.

The inventory of new homes for sale in April represented a 10.1-month supply at the current sales pace.

Regionally, the pace of new home sales was mixed in April. No change was recorded in the Northeast or Midwest, while the South posted a nearly 2% increase and the West declined 3.8%.