New Home Sales Soften in February on Higher Mortgage Rates and Construction Costs
Higher mortgage rates and construction costs pushed new home sales lower in February even as demand remains solid due to a lack of existing home inventory.
Sales of newly built, single-family homes in February fell 2.0% to a 772,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a downwardly revised reading in January, according to newly released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. New home sales are down 6.2% compared to February 2021.