U.S. New Home Sales Decline Sharply in November

In a surprising downturn, new home sales in the United States plummeted by 12.2% on a month-over-month basis in November, settling at 590,000 units compared to a predicted 690,000 units by industry experts, as well as a dip from October’s revised figure of 672,000 units. Despite this monthly decline, there was a slight 1.4% uptick from the previous year.

Pricing and Supply Dynamics

The housing market saw mixed signals in terms of pricing. The median sales price of newly sold homes climbed to $434,700, marking an increase from the $409,300 of the preceding month, while the average sales price saw a negligible rise from $487,000 in October to $488,900.

Inventory levels indicated a greater supply in the market, with a seasonally adjusted estimate of 451,000 new homes available at the end of November, which represents a 9.2 month supply at the current sales rate, up from the 7.8 months' supply recorded at the end of October, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Mortgage Rate Influence

Amid these market conditions, the rate of a 30-year mortgage receded to 6.67% from 6.95%, based on the latest data from Freddie Mac. This marks the second consecutive week of declines. The current rate, however, still sits above the 6.27% average rate from the same period last year. The downward trend in mortgage rates might provide an impetus for prospective buyers to re-enter the market.

Sales, Housing, Economy