New single-family home sales rise 3.7% in January from December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 555,000, 5.5% ahead of the rate of January of 2016, the Commerce Department reported Friday.
The median sales price of new houses sold in January 2017 was $312,900, down from $316,200 in December but up from $291,100 in the same month last year. The average sales price was $360,900, down from $378,900 in December and $365,600 in the same month last year.
The seasonally-adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of January was 265,000. This represents a supply of 5.7 months at the current sales rate.
Regionally, the Northeast and Midwest led gains with sequential gains of 15.8% to a pace of 44,000 and 14.8% to 70,000, respectively. The South gained a more modest 4.3% to a pace of 290,000. The West slipped 4.4% to a rate of 151,000. Year over year, the Northeast was up 22.2%, the Midwest up 4.5%, the South down 1% and the West up 16.2%.
