The seasonally adjusted annual rate of new single-family home sales in December clocked in at 842,000, 1.6 percent above a revised November rate of 829,000.

New-home sales bounced back in December after showing signs of slowing in November, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of new single-family home sales in December clocked in at 842,000, 1.6 percent above the revised November rate of 829,000. That rate also showed a substantial 15.2 percent increase from December 2019 when sales of new single-family homes stood at 731,000.

Holden Lewis, a home and mortgage specialist at NerdWallet, noted that as spring approaches, that modest month-over-month uptick seen in December should continue to ramp up.

“Even though new home sales were weaker than expected, they were still higher than 12 months earlier,” Lewis said. “This is a seasonal dip, and new home sales are likely to bounce back when we see the January report. Longer-term, they will rise because of demographic factors. Each year, millions of people are forming households. Homebuilders aren’t constructing homes fast enough to accommodate demand.”

At a regional level, the Midwest enjoyed the greatest gains with a 30.6 percent increase in new-home sales. New-home sales in the Northeast and South, however, decreased from November to December by 6.1 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively.

The median sales price for new homes sold in December clocked in at $355,900, an 8 percent year-over-year increase.

Meanwhile, the inventory of new homes for sale by the end of December was at a seasonally adjusted estimate of 302,000, a supply of 4.3 months, and a modest improvement from November’s supply of 4.1 months.

Email Lillian Dickerson

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×