 鲜花( 34)  鸡蛋( 5)
|
Sales of new American homes plunged in February to the fewest on records dating back nearly half a century, a dismal sign for an already-weak housing market.
+ m6 _( ~4 u9 ]( z9 Q( t, q6 m; _5 S7 |; j8 |0 e
The Commerce Department said Wednesday new home sales fell 16.9 per cent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 250,000 homes. It's the third straight monthly decline and far below the 700,000-a-year pace that economists view as healthy.
+ l2 D5 u% _4 W+ p2 M$ L6 P! ?7 ?5 L# U8 D" H% R& c8 ^! P5 J+ k
The median price of a new home dropped nearly 14 per cent to $202,100, the lowest since December 2003. New home prices are now 30 percent higher than of those being resold.( v& ^* |* u, Z3 U- M" c) |
D- a1 k" P v% m* a" ^! ?' q& [Builders have struggled to compete with a wave of foreclosures that has lowered the price of previously occupied homes. High unemployment, tight credit and uncertainty over prices have also kept many potential buyers from making purchases. |
|