The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported last week that new home sales improved in October by 0.4 percent from September. While that improvement is positive movement, generally speaking, it falls short of what industry experts were anticipating and remain 23.1 percent below October 2020.
Year-to-date there have been 667,000 new home sold in the U.S., down from 698,000 at the same point in 2020. This is likely attributable to new homes costing an average of $345,900 last year compared to $407,700 in 2021.
Despite the slowdown in new home sales this year, there remain an abundance of newly constructed properties up for grabs. There are currently 389,000 new homes on the market nationwide – an 80 percent improvement in inventory levels compared to 2020.
Today, conforming no-point 30-year fixed mortgage rates are averaging 3.0 percent and 15-year rates are near 2.25 percent.
Do you have a question for Real Estate & Mortgage Analyst Mehran Aram? Submit your queries about a home purchase, refinance, or reverse mortgage via Aramco.biz, social media (#AramcoReport), or over the phone at (877) 700-0942 and your questions may be featured in an upcoming article.
