The inventory of new homes for sale continued to rise in December to 344,000 homes available for sale.
Sales of newly built, single-family homes posted a yearly gain of 1.5% in 2018, according to recently released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The December sales numbers rose 3.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 621,000 units after a downwardly revised November report. (The sales report was delayed due to the partial government shutdown.)
“The slight gain for 2018 new home sales reflects solid underlying demand for homeownership,” said Greg Ugalde, NAHB chairman and a home builder and developer from Torrington, Conn. “Housing affordability remains a challenge across the country, but conditions have improved in early 2019, as illustrated by the recent uptick in builder confidence.”