Sales of new single-family homes climbed 6.8% to a 517,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in April, according to data released by the Commerce Department Tuesday.
The increase came after a revised 10.0% drop to a 484,000 rate in March, originally reported as an 11.4% decrease to 481,000.
Thomson Reuters' poll of economists had predicted a 510,000 sales level for September.
Sales of new homes were 26.1% better than the 410,000 rate in April 2014, Commerce said.
The supply of new homes at the current sales rate fell to 4.8 months from 5.1 months.
At the end of April, the number of new homes on the market grew to 205,000 from 204,000.
The unadjusted average price of a new single-family home slipped to $341,500 from $343,300.
Meanwhile, the unadjusted median price rose to $297,300 from $285,500 in the previous month.
Sales declined in two of the four regions of the country in the month.
Sales in the Northeast were down 5.6% to 17,000 from 18,000 and sales in the West fell 2.3% to 130,000 from 133,000. Sales in the South were up 5.8% to 292,000 from 276,000, and Midwest sales rose 36.8% to 78,000 from 57,000.
