New single-family home sales fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 551,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The May rate is 6.0 percent below the revised April estimate of 586,000, but 8.7 percent above the May 2015 estimate.
Sales were mixed across regions, falling 33.3 percent in the Northeast, 0.9 percent in the South and 15.6 percent in the West. In contrast, sales in the Midwest rose by 12.9 percent.
The median price of a new home was $290,400, down 9.3 percent from April. The average price was $358,000, down 5.1 percent from the previous month.
At the end of May there was an estimated supply of 5.3 months at the current sales rate, up from a 4.9 month supply in April.
Read the Census/HUD release.
