Sales of new single-family houses in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 481,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development. The March rate was 11.4 percent below the revised February rate of 543,000, but 19.4 percent higher than one year ago.
Sales decreased in all regions except for the Midwest, which had a 5.9 percent increase in new home sales. The Northeast experienced the largest decline of the regions, falling 33.3 percent from February. The South and West declined by 15.8 percent and 3.4 percent.
The median sales price of new homes sold was $277,400, down 1.5 percent from last month. The average price was $343,300, a 0.6 percent decline from February.
At the end of March, there was an estimated supply of 5.3 months at the current seasonally adjusted sales rate.
