After a sharp 15.4% decline in March, new home sales ticked upward 0.6% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 623,000, the U.S. Census Bureau reported.
The rate is 6.2% below April 2019’s new home sales pace.
“The April estimates from Census came in better than forecast, so there is a possibility of a downward revision in the next release," said National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist Robert Dietz said in a statement. "Nonetheless, the data matches recent commentary from builders and reflects recent gains in mortgage applications.”
Regionally, new home sales increased 8.7% in the Northeast, and both the Midwest and South grew 2.4%. New home sales in the West declined 6.3%.
New home inventory declined 3% compared with April 2019 to 325,000, a 6.3-month supply at the current sales pace.
