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U.S. new home sales fall in March from 7-year high

Xinhua, April 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

Sales of U.S. new homes plunged in March from a seven-year high, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

The sales of new single-family houses in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 481,000, 11.4 percent below the revised February rate. The Commerce Department revised the February reading up to 543,000, the highest since February 2008.

The median sales price of new houses stood at 277,400 U.S. dollars in the month. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of March was 213,000 units, which represented a supply of 5.3 months at the current sales rate.

New home sales, though accounting for only a small share of total sales in the housing market, still have an important impact on job creation and household consumption.

Other reports suggested the housing market is picking up after a sluggish winter. Existing home sales, which account for a larger share of the market than new home sales, jumped 6.1 percent in March to their highest annual rate in 18 months, the National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday. Endite