After reporting a steep drop in new home sales in the month of May due to the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit, the Commerce Department released a report Monday morning showing that sales rebounded by more than expected in June.
The report showed that new home sales rose by 23.6 percent to an annual rate of 330,000 in June from the revised May rate of 267,000. Economists had expected sales to edge up to 310,000 from the 300,000 originally reported for the previous month.
The bigger than expected rebound came after new home sales plummeted 36.7 percent in May, falling to their lowest level on record.
Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak, said, "While the figure was better than expected, new home sales make up less than 10% of the overall industry, with existing homes making up the balance."
"It's good to see a pick up in new home sales but an overall market that still has way to much inventory does not need too many new homes built," he added.
The increase in new home sales in June reflected a notable increase in sales in the Northeast, which rose by 46.4 percent. New home sales in the South and the West also rose by 33.1 percent and 20.5 percent, respectively, while sales in the West fell by 6.6 percent.
Meanwhile, the report also showed that the median sales price of new houses sold in June was $213,400, down 1.4 percent from $216,400 in May and down 0.6 percent from $214,700 in June of 2009.
The Commerce Department also said that the seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of June was 210,000, representing 7.6 months of supply at the current sales rate, down from 9.6 months of supply in May.
Last Thursday, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing a decrease in existing home sales in June, although sales fell by less than expected and remained at relatively elevated levels.
NAR said existing home sales fell by 5.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.37 million units in June from 5.66 million units in May. Economists had been expecting existing home sales to show a steeper decline to a 5.09 million unit rate.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.