U.S. – Although sales of newly built, single-family homes fell 7.6 percent in August against the July reading to 609,000 units, this marks the second consecutive month that sales have topped a 600,000 annual pace since the Great Recession.

“Given the huge jump in sales in July, the August reading remains robust,” said Ed Brady, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder and developer from Bloomington, Ill.  “Sales are up 21 percent from August last year and year-to-date they are running 13 percent higher, indicating that the housing recovery remains firmly on track.”

“A low supply of homes, a broadening of the market with additional sales growth in lower price points  and rising household formation all point to a growing demand for housing as we move into 2017,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz.

The inventory of new homes for sale was 235,000 in August, which is a 4.6-month supply at the current sales pace. The median sales price of new houses sold was USD 284,000.

Regionally, new home sales fell by 34.3 percent in the Northeast, 12.3 percent in the South and 2.4 percent in the Midwest. Sales rose 8 percent in the West.