**MNI: 5 Things We Learned From New Residential Sales Data>

By Holly Stokes and Sara Haire

     WASHINGTON (MNI) - The following are the key points from the 

December new residential sales data released Thursday by the 

Commerce Department: 

     -December new home sales saw a 9.3% decrease to 625k SAAR, well 

below the 679k expected. However, new home sales were up 14.1% 

year-over-year on a seasonally adjusted basis, indicating new home sales 

continue to trend higher. New homes sold on a year-over-year basis 

unadjusted saw a rise of 10.3%.   

     -The median new home sales price rose 0.1% to $335,400, while the 

average sales price rose to $398,900, making these both the highest on 

record since the series start in January 1963     

     -Unable to keep up with November's outstanding growth, sales saw 

declines in all regions. The South saw a 9.8% decrease to 331k, the 

largest percentage decrease since March 2015. The West fell 9.5% to 

190k, the Northeast saw a 2.4% fall to 41k, and the Midwest fell 10.0% 

rise to 63k. 

     - November's new home sales were revised down to a still strong 

689k from the 733k previously reported. 

     -New homes for sale at the end of the period saw a 3.9% increase to 

295k. This is the highest level seen since April 2009. Because of the 

increase in homes for sale and the decline in sales of new homes, the 

months' supply on the market rose 16.3% to 5.7 months from 4.9 months in 

November. 

           ** MNI Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 ** 

[TOPICS: MAUDS$,M$U$$$,MAUDR$]