Pursuits
U.S. New-Home Sales Unexpectedly Surge to Almost Nine-Year High
- Gains driven by purchases in South, lower-priced houses
- Unbuilt homes climb, inventory down in boost to construction
U.S. New-Home Sales Surge 12.4% in July
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Purchases of new U.S. homes unexpectedly jumped in July to the highest level in almost nine years, led by soaring demand in the nation’s south and adding to signs of persistent housing-market strength.
Sales increased 12.4 percent to a 654,000 annualized pace, the fastest since October 2007, Commerce Department data showed Tuesday in Washington. That exceeded the most optimistic forecast in a Bloomberg survey. Purchases in the South were the strongest since before the start of the last recession.