New-home sales stumbled in April, with sales of new, single-family homes down 11.4 percent to 569,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The average new-home sales price was $368,300, while the median was $309,200. New-home listing inventory was 268,000—5.7 months supply.
“New-home sales plummeted 11.4 percent in April—bad news, especially for first-time and lower income buyers,” says Joseph Kirchner, senior economist at realtor.com®. “This month’s drop in home sales and the stagnation in new-home inventory will continue to exacerbate the national inventory shortage, which will result in even higher prices and lower affordability. A short supply of new homes means more competition and higher prices for everything else. Buyers will have even more difficulty finding a suitable home to purchase—and they’ve been having enough trouble as it is.
“April data also show the percentage of homes under $200,000 decreasing from 16 to 12 percent,” Kirchner says. “This exacerbates a persistent trend away from the sale of affordable new homes. The percentage of new homes under $200,000 since November has dropped by about a third since the previous two years. Builders are focusing on the mid- to upper-price ranges, which is reflected in the lack of affordable new homes on the market. Without more affordable options, millennials and other first-time buyers will continue to face challenges getting into their first homes.”
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
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