Sales of new single-family houses in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 592,000, a 5.2 percent increase compared with October’s rate of 563,000 and a 16.5 percent increase over November 2015’s rate of 508,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
“New home sales showed growing strength in 2016 and builders expect more of the same next year,” said Ed Brady, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, in a statement. “A key to continued growth in 2017 will be to ensure that prospective, qualified first-time home buyers have access to affordable home loans.”
New single-family home sales rose 43.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 92,000 in the Midwest and 7.7 percent in the West to a rate of 154,000. Sales were unchanged in the Northeast at 33,000 and decreased 3.1 percent to 313,000 in the South.
