New home sales hit eight-month high in August

Sales of newly built U.S. single-family homes rose 6.4% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 684,000 units, the highest level since December 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The July figure was revised up to 643,000 from 607,000. Economists polled by Reuters had expected 615,000. Sales were sharply uneven by region: up 84.9% in the Midwest and 6.9% in the South, but down 36.1% in the Northeast and 15.2% in the West. On the year, sales fell 2%. Price cuts and incentives helped, even as elevated mortgage rates persisted. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage reached 6.95% last week, its highest since January 2025. Inventory remained heavy, with 483,000 homes available and more than half still under construction—about 8.5 months to clear at the August pace.