Buoyed largely by the second-lowest interest rates since 1956 and a strengthening national economy, new home sales set a new record in March, according to a recent U.S. Dept. of Commerce report. The pace of new, single-family home sales increased 8.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.228 million in March compared to the previous month and increased 21.8 percent compared to March 2003.
"Though interest rates are beginning to rise as the economy improves, we still expect the housing market to remain strong because the fundamentals- household incomes, employment and household formations- are strong," said National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Chief Economist David
Seiders.
Three regions registered sales increases during March, according to the report. New home sales in the South increased 19.3 percent, 5.0 percent in the Midwest and 5.1 in the West. Sales in the Northeast declined 24.3 percent.
The inventory of new homes for sale in March was 372,000 units, representing a very low 3.7-month supply at the current sales
Posted by gandlwoods at May 10, 2004 08:30 AM