New Home Inventories Lowest in Decades

November 30, 2009

The U.S. Commerce Department has reported that sales of new single-family houses in October 2009 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 430,000. The numbers are based on estimates released on November 25, 2009, by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

New home sales in the south far outpaced sales in other regions of the country. The recent sales leave an estimated 239,000 new houses on the market nationwide, the lowest inventory level in almost 40 years.

The report is good news for builders who have experienced slowdowns due to excess inventory.

For more information, see the Census Bureau quarterly report.