WASHINGTON — The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development have reported a decline in new residential sales for October 2024.

New home sales

Sales of new single-family houses in October 2024 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 610,000, according to new estimates released jointly by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 17.3 percent below the revised September rate of 738,000 and 9.4 percent below the October 2023 estimate of 673,000.

“The decline in new home sales highlights the pressures on prospective buyers who are navigating tighter budgets and higher borrowing costs,” said Carl Harris, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a custom home builder from Wichita, Kansas. “The drop also reflects a slowdown in buyer activity amid broader economic uncertainty.”

A new home sale occurs when a sales contract is signed, or a deposit is accepted. The home can be in any stage of construction: not yet started, under construction, or completed. In addition to adjusting for seasonal effects, the October reading of 610,000 units is the number of homes that would sell if this pace continued for the next 12 months.

Sales price

The median sales price of new houses sold in October 2024 was $437,300. The average sales price was $545,800.

“Higher mortgage rates, up 60 basis points in October per Freddie Mac, and elevated home prices continued to worsen affordability challenges,” said Danushka Nanayakkara-Skillington, NAHB’s assistant vice president for forecasting and analysis. “Despite these headwinds, which also include increased material costs for builders, new construction remains a vital part of the market, especially in areas with low existing home inventory.”

For sales inventory and months' supply

The seasonally-adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of October was 481,000. This represents a
supply of 9.5 months at the current sales rate. Completed, ready-to-occupy inventory is up 52.6% to a level of 116,000, compared to a year ago. However, that inventory type remains 24% of total inventory.