WASHINGTON — New single-family home sales pace slowed down slightly by 0.6% to 618,000, following sharp upward revisions to January, December, and November, data released by the Commerce Department Friday showed.
New home sales pace came in only mildly softer than the expected 620,000, based on an MNI survey of economists.
The supply of new homes for sale rose 2.0% to 305,000 in February, surpassing the high 299,000 in January, making this the highest level seen since March of 2009 when it reached 311,000. Based on the movements in sales and supply in February, the months' supply increased only 1.7% to 5.9 months, up slightly from January's revised down 5.8, and above the 5.1 months supply a year ago.
Despite the supply of new homes rising and the sales pace only moderating slightly in February, the median sales price rose 0.6% to $326,800. This is still well above the $298,000 in February 2017, but significantly lower than the levels seen in November and December. The average sales price saw a very small decline to $376,700.
Sales throughout the regions were mixed. The large south region saw a 9.0% increase and the Northeast increased 19.4%. However, the Midwest and the West declined by 3.7% and 17.6%, respectively.
January new homes sales were revised up sharply to 622,000 rate from the 593,000 rate previously reported. December sales were revised up to a 653,000 rate from the 643,000 pace previously reported. November also saw an upward revision to 711,000 from the 696,000 seen previously.
