While housing affordability has been getting a hand from lower mortgage rates, it didn’t lift new-home sales last month.
Sales of newly built single-family homes under performed in what is traditionally the busiest time of year in the housing sector. New-home sales dropped 7.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 626,000 units in May, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday. The number represents signed contracts, not closings.
Overall, the “May numbers are a big surprising given lower mortgage interest rates and solid builder confidence data,” says Robert Dietz, NAHB’s chief economist. “Based on these conditions, we expect June new home sales figures will show a rebound.”
Source: National Association of Home Builders and “New Home Sales Sank 7.8% in May, Despite a Big Drop in Mortgage Rates,” CNBC (June 25, 2019)