[1]Sales of new single family homes took an unexpected turn Tuesday, when data released showed the rate rose to the highest it has been in seven years. According to data [2] released by the U.S. Census Bureau and HUD, the February sales are up nearly 25 percent compared to sales from that month last year. Sales for February 2014 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 539,000. This is 7.8 percent above the January rate of 500,000.
The report brings positive news to what some might say has been a lackluster start for housing in the New Year. January marked a slow start for housing recovery [3], with single-family housing starts falling 6.7 percent month-over-month. Overall, January’s new construction rate was down 2 percent from the month before. And in February, privately-owned housing starts dropped to the lowest rate seen in years [4]. Housing starts for February dropped 17 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 897,000.
The median sales price of new houses sold in February 2015 was $275,500; the average sales price was $341,000. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of February was 210,000. This represents a supply of 4.7 months at the current sales rate.
The Northeast saw the largest increase in both month-over-month and year-over-year figures with improved weather conditions. The region had an 84 percent increase in sales from February 2014 and a massive 152.9 percent increase from January 2015 to February 2015. The West also saw a large increase in year-over-year rates with a 34 percent increase, but had a 6 percent decrease in sales from January 2015 to February 2015. The South showed gains in both monthly and yearly figures, while the Midwest saw a 3.6 percent decline year-over-year and a 12.9 percent decline month-over-month.