In September, new single-family home sales fell 0.6% month-over-month and 5.3% year-over-year, according to the latest data from the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Further, the median sales price of new houses increased 3.9% month-over-month, but fell 3.9% year-over-year.
Maor Greenberg, co-founder and CEO of Spacial, an AI-powered structural engineering platform for residential construction and a 19-year veteran of the construction & real estate industries, shared the following comments about the latest data.
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The good and bad: “September showed a market still struggling with affordability, but there weren’t any clear signs that conditions were getting worse. Buyers need to make the monthly payment work. For builders, this means a house can attract interest, yet still be difficult to sell at a price that makes the project worthwhile.”
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Looking ahead: “Going forward, I’m watching whether or not builders can keep making sales without giving up more margin through discounts or financing incentives. That would tell us more about demand strength than a small move in the headline sales figure.”
