Washington, D.C. -- Sales of newly built, single-family homes decreased 0.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 733,000 units in October, off strong upward revisions to the September reading, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. On a year-to-date basis, new home sales for 2019 are 9.6% higher than the same period in 2018. Moreover, the past two months represent the highest monthly sales rate since October 2007.
"Forty-five percent of homes sold in October were priced below $300,000, which is an indication that more millennial buyers are taking advantage of low mortgage rates and entering into the marketplace," said Greg Ugalde, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).