Washington, DC, October 26, 2006--Sales of new homes in September unexpectedly rose 5.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.075 million, according to the Commerce Department.
The increase was the most in three months and well above the 1.05 million expected by economists.
New-home sales are down 14.2% in the past year. Inventories of unsold homes fell 1.9% to 557,000, representing a 6.4-month supply at the September sales pace. It's the second consecutive decline in inventories. The inventory peaked at 7.2 months in July. Inventories are up 14.4% in the past year.
The median sales price of a new home fell 9.7% in the 12 months ending in September, the fastest price decline in nearly 36 years, the government said Thursday.
