U.S. new home sales fall by 7.6% in December

Not surprisingly, new home sales fell by 7.6% during December 2009 to a seasonally adjusted rate of 342,000. The entire fourth quarter of the year is generally a very slow time for home sales of all types, which were likely boosted for the existing home market by tax credits. From the L.A. Times:

The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate for single-family homes in the U.S. was 342,000, down from a revised November rate of 370,000 and 8.6% below the December 2008 estimate of 374,000.

The median sales price of new houses sold in December 2009 was $221,300. The median is the point at which half the homes sold for more and half for less.

The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of December was 231,000, a supply of 8.1 months at the current sales clip.

For the year, an estimated 374,000 new homes were sold in 2009, a decline of 22.9% from the 2008 figure of 485,000.