With the end to the government shutdown, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have announced new-home sales for November, reporting a significant surge.
New-Home Sales: 657,000
- +16.9 percent from Oct. 2018
- -20.7 percent from Nov. 2017
For-Sale Inventory: 330,000
Months’ Supply: 6.0
Median Price: $309,700
What the Industry’s Saying
“The sales increase was fueled by a notable uptick in homes sold at the affordable end of the market. There is clearly a demand for new homes even as builders continue to grapple with supply-side challenges, including shortages of lots and labor and higher building material costs stemming from tariffs.” – Randy Noel, Chairman, National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)
“Even after an autumn that proved stronger than first reported…new-home sales are poised to end 2018 down decidedly from a year ago. November was an okay month in terms of volume, but was nevertheless well below Nov. 2017, when a rush of buyers likely pushed their closing dates forward prior to new tax laws taking effect…It’s been a season of anxiety for builders over the past few months, driven by worries of a potential broader economic slowdown, high construction costs and short-term uncertainty as a result of political volatility. The partial federal government shutdown also delayed the collection and publication of critical housing market data widely used in long-term planning and decision-making…The path of mortgage rates has shifted definitively lower since the fall, but the builder pipeline is a long one and it will take them many months to respond to those changes, if they decide to at all given the longer-term storm clouds on the horizon. The effect of lower rates is more likely to be seen in new construction prices than in sales numbers.” – Aaron Terrazas, Senior Economist, Zillow
