Sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 3.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 372,000 units in July from an upwardly revised pace in the previous month, according to figures released by HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau today.
"Sales of new homes in July returned to the same solid pace they set in May, which was the fastest sales rate we'd seen in more than two years," said Barry Rutenberg, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Gainesville, Fla. "This is further evidence that consumers are becoming more confident in local housing markets as they look to take advantage of today's very favorable prices and interest rates."