–May Home Sale +13.5% Year/Year, Up 15.4% Before Seasonal Adjustment
–Sales Pace Revised Up In March and April
–Supply On Market Falls 3.5% To Record Low 166,000
By Kevin Kastner
WASHINGTON (MNI) – The pace of new single-family home sales fell
2.1% in May to an annual rate of 319,000 after seasonal adjustment, a
higher rate than expected, data released Thursday by the Commerce
Department showed.
Analysts had expected sales to fall to a 305,000 seasonally
adjusted annual rate, based on the median forecast in a Market News
International survey. There were upward revisions to the sales rates in
March and April.
Sales rose 2.4% in the large South region, but were down in the
Northeast and West regions and were flat in the Midwest.
On an unadjusted basis, new home sales were down 3.2% from April,
but were up 15.4% from a year ago.
The supply of homes for sale fell 3.5% to a record low 166,000 in
May. As a result of the large drop in supply and the relatively smaller
sales decline, the months supply fell to 6.2 months from 6.3 months in
April. The May level is the lowest since April 2010, when it was also
6.2 months.
The median sales price rose 2.6% to $222,600 in May, but was still
down 3.4% from May 2010.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
[TOPICS: MAUDS$,MT$$$$,M$U$$$,MAUDR$]
