WASHINGTON -- Sales of new U.S. homes dipped in October and inventories rose, but builders boosted prices by over $30,000 per unit after a sharp decline in home prices a month earlier, a government report showed Wednesday.
New single-family home sales declined 3.2 percent in October to an annualized rate of 1.004 million units from a downwardly revised rate of 1.037 million in September, the Commerce Department said. Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting October sales to ease to a 1.044 million rate from a rate of 1.075 million in September.
October sales were down 25.4 percent compared to a year ago.
The median sales price of a new home rose more than 13 percent to $248,500 in October from $218,200 in September as builders were able to boost prices despite a modest decline in the rate of sales. October's median home price was the highest since they reached $257,000 in April.
The supply of homes available for sale in October at the current sales pace rose to 7 months' worth from 6.4 months' worth in September. There was a total of 558,000 homes available for sale at the end of October, up slightly from the 562,000 reported in September.
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New home sales in the Northeast dropped 39 percent in October and they dropped 5.6 percent in the Midwest and were down 1.7 percent in the South. The West, which saw an increase of 3.2 percent , was the only region to see a rise.
The Commerce Department's take on new home sales in October came a day after a real estate trade group said U.S. existing home sales rose modestly, breaking six months of declines. The National Association of Realtors said home resales rose to an annual rate of 6.24 million from a 6.21 million pace in September.
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