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TwitterDespite an extension of the federal credit meant to attract buyers the sale of new homes in the US fell slightly in February.
Sales slipped 2.2% to an annual pace of 308,000, seasonally adjusted, which is the lowest rate since the government began tracking the data in 1963, according to the Commerce Department. The rate of sales is down 13% compared February 2009.
Very high unemployment rates (9.7%), which is close to a 26-year high; and slightly tougher lending standards are believed to be the cause of low sales. Prospective buys may also be getting discouraged to buy just now since they may be expecting prices to fall further still. To some extent, poor weather in early 2010 may also hurt home sales, though a downward trend has been evident since last fall. “We can cite the weather but Mother Nature can’t be entirely blamed for this report,” economist Jennifer Lee of BMO Capital Markets said in an email.
Posts Tagged ‘housing market’
February new-house sales at 308,000 annual rate
Posted by Amita Kalra on March 24th, 2010
Posted in North America 
Tags: commerce department, downward trend, february sales, first time buyers, housing market, tax credit 
Comments OffForeclosure Filings Increase at Slowest Pace in Four Years
Posted by Amita Kalra on March 11th, 2010
Probably like a silver lining to the dark cloud of the foreclosure crisis, RealtyTrac Inc. said on Thursday that the number of U.S. households facing foreclosure in February grew 6 percent from a year ago, the smallest annual increase in four years. A state wise analysis reveals that foreclosures declined on a monthly basis and yearly basis in the hard-hit states of Nevada (One in every 102 Nevada housing units received a foreclosure filing), Arizona (1 in 163 homes received a filing) and California (15% year-over-year decline), but still grew rapidly in Florida. Banks claimed nearly 79,000 homes last month, down 10 percent from January but still up 6 percent from February 2009.