Sales of new single-family houses in May rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development. The May rate is 2.2 percent above the revised April rate of 534,000 and is 19.5 percent above the year-ago rate of 457,000.
New home sales increased in two of the four regions. Sales in the Northeast rose 87.5 percent on the month to 30,000 new homes, and sales in the West rose 13.1 percent to 138,000. The Midwest and South regions saw declines in sales, falling 5.7 percent and 4.3 percent respectively.
The median sales price of new homes sold in May was $282,800, down 2.9 percent from April. The average price was $337,000, up 0.9 percent on the month.
At the end of May, there was an estimated supply of 4.5 months at the current sales rate.
