Steel Markets

NAHB: New Home Sales Slipped in April, But Remain Strong

May 22, 2019

Sales of new homes in April slid 6.9 percent from March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 673,000, according to the latest data released by the Department of Commerce. Sales were 7.0 percent higher than the April 2018 estimate of 629,000.

The decline in sales followed a robust 723,000 sales pace in March and was the third strongest rate of the current housing cycle, said National Association of Home Builders chief economist Robert Dietz.

“After an upward revision, March and April newly-built single-family homes sales data indicate that lower mortgage rates and price incentives increased the volume of transactions as the spring home buying season stabilized after weakness in late 2018.

“The March data places the industry back on a trend line that has been in place since 2011,” added Dietz. “For the first four months of the year, new home sales are 6.7 percent ahead of the sales pace of the initial four months of 2018. However, those gains have distinct regional clustering. Year-to-date sales are up 10.3 percent in the South, 6.7 percent in the West (concentrated in the Mountain states), and 1.3 percent in the Midwest, while recording a 17.6 percent decline in the Northeast.

An estimated 332,000 new homes were for sale at the end of April, a supply of 5.9 months at the current sales rate. A six-month supply is considered a balanced market.

Median sales price in April was $342,200, up 8 percent from a year ago, and the average sales price was $393,700.