MW: U.S. Dec. new home sales down 14.7% to lowest level ever
U.S. new home sales fell 14.7% in December to the lowest level on record,, the Commerce Department estimated Thursday. The decline in new-home sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331,000 was far below the 390,000 pace expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. New-home sales in November were revised to a 388,000 level compared with the previous estimate of 407,000. There were 482,000 new homes sold in 2008, down a record 37.9% from 776,000 sold in 2007. This is the lowest since 1982. The months' supply of homes on the market rose to 12.9 months in December from 12.5 months in November. Median sales prices have fallen 9.3% in the past year to $206,500.
