US new-home sales fall in July
WASHINGTON: Sales of new homes in the United States fell for the third straight month in July, government data showed Tuesday in a report highlighting continued weakness in the housing market.
Sales of new single-family homes fell 0.7 percent from June, to an annual rate of 298,000 homes, the Commerce Department said.
The months-long decline in sales was heading toward the all-time low of 281,000 set in February, in records dating back to 1963.
The department sharply revised downward the sales rate for the previous two months, to 309,000 in May and 300,000 in June.
The number of new homes for sale at the end of the month was 165,000, a record low. The number of homes on the market represents a supply of 6.6 months at the current sales rate, the department said.
The US housing market is suffering from a glut of homes for sale after the collapse of a price bubble in 2007 and amid a surge of foreclosed properties sold at bargain-basement prices.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011
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