Washington, D.C. -- Sales of newly built, single-family homes fell 12.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 635,000 units in July off a strongly revised upward reading in June, according to recently-released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. On a year-to-date basis, new home sales for 2019 are 4.1% higher than the same period in 2018.

"Builder confidence continues to trend upward as lower interest rates provide for more favorable buying conditions," said Greg Ugalde, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

"New home sales were sharply revised upward in June to a post-recession high annual rate of 728,000," said Robert Dietz, NAHB chief economist. "While we continue to see volatility in the monthly numbers, sales continue to trend in a slightly positive direction and are in line with our forecast."

The inventory of new homes for sale was 337,000 in July, representing a 6.4 months' supply. The median sales price was $312,800. The median price of a new home sale a year earlier was $327,500

Regionally, and on a year to date basis, new home sales are 7.2% higher in the South and 9.5% higher in the West. Sales are down 15.4% in the Northeast and 12.4% in the Midwest

For more information, visit www.nahb.org.