• The pace of new home sales climbed 2.3% to an annualized 454,000 in April 2013, which was above market expectations for a 425,000 reading, and followed a 3.5% increase to an upwardly revised 444,000 pace in March that was significantly stronger than the initially reported 417,000
• The inventory of new homes available for sale rose 3.3% to 156,000 units; however, with the increase in sales, inventories remained relatively tight with the months’ supply of homes available for sale holding steady at 4.1, which was unchanged from March and well below the longer-run average closer to 6.
• The median new home price jumped 14.9% from its year-ago level and marked an improvement in the annual pace of price growth from the 4.5% increase in March.
Sales of new single-family homes in the US rose 2.3% to an annualized 454,000 units in April 2013 and built on an upwardly revised 3.5% increase to 444,000 in March (previously reported as 417,000). The level of sales in April was above market expectations for a 425,000 reading. The increase in April sales was concentrated in the West (10.8%) and South (3.0%) with partial offsets provided by a 16.7% drop in the Northeast and a 4.8% decline in the Midwest.
The inventory of unsold new homes increased by 3.3% to 156,000 in April from 151,000 in March; however, this was offset by the increase in the monthly sales pace that left the months’ supply of new home available for sale steady at 4.1, which was unchanged from a downwardly revised 4.1 reading in March (previously was 4.4) and represented a historically tight supply compared to the longer-run average that is closer to 6. The median new home price jumped 14.9% from its year-ago level that marked an improvement in the annual pace of price growth from the 4.5% increase in March.
The rise in the pace of new home sales in April left the measure 2.3% above the average 444,000 units in the first quarter of 2013 and 29% above its year-ago level. Year-to-date sales are running 21.2% above the annual sales pace in 2012. The improving demand for new homes, along with the earlier indications of a similar trend for existing homes, is occurring in the face of tight supply conditions, which are contributing to rising home prices and supporting improvement in construction activity. In addition to directly supporting employment, construction, and sales activity in the real-estate sector, ongoing improvement in housing markets is likely helping to underpin consumer confidence and spending, thereby providing welcome support to private-sector demand and providing some offset to a sizeable near-term fiscal contraction.
RBC