According to the NAHB, spiraling costs, high interest rates and economic uncertainty continue to act as headwinds on the housing sector. As a result, many potential buyers are opting to not pull the trigger.

Sales of newly built single-family homes did rise 0.6% in June, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 627,000, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. However, the past two months have been the slowest sales pace since October 2024, as mortgage rates averaged above 6.8% in June.

“New home sales remained flat last month, highlighting persistent weakness in the housing market despite seasonal expectations for growth,” said Buddy Hughes, chairman of the NAHB. “Elevated mortgage rates and sustained price levels continue to limit purchasing power, particularly among first-time and middle-income buyers.”

A new home sale occurs when a sales contract is signed or a deposit is accepted. The home can be in any stage of construction: not yet started, under construction or completed. In addition to adjusting for seasonal effects, the June reading of 627,000 units is the number of homes that would sell if this pace continued for the next 12 months.

New single-family home inventory continued to rise with 511,000 residences marketed for sale as of June. This is 1.2% higher than the previous month and 8.5% higher than a year ago. At the current sales pace, the months’ supply for new homes remained elevated at 9.8 compared to 8.4 a year ago. Completed, ready-to-occupy inventory stood at 114,000 homes in June, up 21.3% from a year ago.

Regionally, on a year-to-date basis, new home sales are down in all four regions, falling 25.6% in the Northeast, 8.5% in the Midwest, 1.6% in the South and 4% in the West.



Source: NAHB