The National Association of Home Builders reports newly-released figures from the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Census Bureau indicate sales of newly-built single-family homes rose 1.5 percent in March, a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 417,000 units. Says NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe, “The latest sales report is right in line with our forecast for continued, modest increases in home prices and sales through 2013. At this point, we are about half-way back to what would be considered a ‘normal’ level of sales activity as challenges related to supplies of credit, building materials, lots and labor are slowing the pace at which builders can build and sell new homes.” Regionally, sales rose 20.6 percent in the Northeast and 19.4 percent in the South while falling 20.9 percent in the West and 12.1 percent in the Midwest. As MHProNews has learned, the inventory of new homes for sale did not change from the previous month, holding at 151,000 units in March, amounting to a 4.4 month supply at the current sales pace.
