SALES DOWN BUT PRICES HOLDING
New-home sales were down more than 17 percent in the second quarter, and sales of pre-owned homes were off 15 percent in June. The biggest drop in new-home sales was in homes below $150,000.
“What we are seeing more than anything is the impact of the tightening of the subprime market,” Mr. Brown said. “Some of those buyers probably shouldn’t be buying.”
During the first half of 2007, the median sales price of pre-owned homes was up 1 percent from a year earlier to $150,000, primarily because fewer low-cost homes were changing hands.
Builders started 8,568 single-family homes in the quarter — down almost 40 percent from a year earlier, according to statistics by housing analyst Metrostudy Inc. Builders sold 9,774 homes in the just-completed quarter — the lowest total in more than two years.
With the cutback in construction, the number of unsold new homes in the area has declined to just under 11,000. About 13,000 single-family homes were under construction in North Texas, compared with about 18,000 a year ago, according to Metrostudy.
The supply of homes for sale is down from same time last year’s eight months to about seven months.
Source: The Dallas Morning News
Read MoreNew Homes Sales Spike Unexpectedly
Sales of new U.S. homes rose a much larger-than-expected 13.8 percent in March, the biggest one-month gain since April 1993, but prices fell sharply, a government report showed Wednesday.
The pace of new home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted 1.213 million unit annual rate from a downwardly revised 1.066 million unit rate in February, the Commerce Department said.
Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting home sales to rise to a 1.1 million unit pace in March.
Despite gains, the new home sales report showed signs the housing market has slowed from peak levels. The median home price slipped 2.2 percent from a year earlier to $224,200, the first year-over-year decline since December 2003, the Commerce Department said.
Also, the March sales pace was down 7.2 percent from March 2005.
Even so, the strong new home sales pace comes after a trade association report Tuesday that showed existing home sales picked up by 0.3 percent in March, defying expectations for a slowdown, as buying rose in less-expensive markets and warm weather encouraged buyers.
Source: Fox News
Read More
Recent Comments