New Home Sales Reach Highest Level
According to the Commerce Department, new home sales rose “18.9 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 667,000, the most in a decade.” Sales rose in every region across the country. There was speculation that damage from the hurricanes may have also inflated the data slightly. According to the Seattle Times, the measure of new home sales is based on contract signings, so this number could have been lifted by those looking to replace homes destroyed by the hurricanes.
However, sales also jumped outside of hurricane-affected areas. In the West, sales increased 3 percent. Additionally, lack of supply across the country has discouraged many would-be buyers. The numbers in this latest report “suggest that Americans are increasingly looking to new homes instead” of existing homes, which could further increase construction. This makes developers and builders optimistic.
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