Free Republic

ECONOMIC REPORT Stunning 13.8% increase in new home sales Median prices down year-over-year first time since Dec. 2003 By Rex Nutting, MarketWatch WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- New home sales unexpectedly increased by 13.8% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.213 million, the highest level of the year, the Commerce Department estimated Wednesday. The increase more than reversed the 10.9% decline in sales in February. It was far stronger than the mild increase to 1.10 million annualized that was expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. See Economic Calendar. Combined with the small increase reported in existing home sales on...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. new home sales jumped a surprising 9.4 percent in August, the fastest acceleration of sales in almost four years, as a fresh dip in mortgage interest rates attracted buyers, a government report showed on Monday. Sales of new single-family homes climbed to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.184 million units from a downwardly revised 1.082 million units the month before, the Commerce Department (news - web sites) said. It was the sharpest climb since December 2000. Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting sales to rise to a 1.165 million pace. Housing remains strong, helped by...