National new-home sales in September showed a 2.7 percent gain over revised numbers for August, but were still 33.1 percent lower than September 2007, the Commerce Department reported yesterday.
The month-to-month national increase was primarily the result of a 22.7 percent boost in new-home sales in the West, where builders are slashing prices to compete with a huge number of foreclosures on the market.
Still, new-home sales in the West were 36.4 percent below September 2007. In the Northeast, new-home sales fell 21.4 percent from August and were 65.1 percent lower than September 2007, the Commerce Department reported.
Economists expected the monthly bounce-back in September, but “home sales are fighting fierce headwinds from sharp declines in household net worth, shrinking employment levels, and periodic upward pressure on mortgage rates,” said Brian Bethune of IHS Global Insight, of Lexington, Mass.
“Offsetting this,” he said, “home valuations are much more reasonable.”
The good news for all, the boost in month-to-month sales nationally cut the inventory for sale 8.8 percent, to 10.6 months, or 394,000 houses.
“Despite the fact that builders are moving very few new homes, the slight rise in sales holds out hope that the bottom has been reached,” said Commerce Bancorp Inc. chief economist Joel L. Naroff.
“While the gain was nothing to write home about, up is an awful lot better than down,” he said. “Given how hard it is to get a mortgage these days, I will take it.”
Good news for Existing-home sales numbers as well - including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops - rose 5.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.18 million units in September from a level of 4.91 million in August, and are 1.4 percent higher than the 5.11 million-unit pace in September 2007.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said more markets are seeing year-over-year gains. “The sales turnaround which began in California several months ago is broadening now to Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Rhode Island,” he said. “The South was hampered by much lower home sales in Houston in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike.”
The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $191,600 in September, down 9.0 percent from a year ago when the median was $210,500.
Regionally, the numbers look like this:
West - Existing-home sales in the West jumped 16.8 percent to an annual rate of 1.25 million in September, and are 34.4 percent higher than September 2007. The median price in the West was $253,600, down 18.5 percent from a year ago.
Midwest - Existing-home sales increased 4.4 percent to an annual pace of 1.19 million in September, but are 2.5 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $152,500, which is 7.9 percent lower than September 2007.
South - Existing-home sales rose 2.2 percent in September to a pace of 1.90 million but remain 7.8 percent below September 2007. The median price in the South was $167,200, down 4.1 percent from a year ago.
Northeast - Existing-home sales slipped 1.2 percent to an annual pace of 840,000 in September, and are 7.7 percent lower than a year ago. The median price in the Northeast was $246,800, down 5.4 percent from September 2007.
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