MNI DATA IMPACT: US June Home Sales Below-Expected 646k SAAR>

--Headline Follows May Revised Down To 604k

--June Homes Supply Rose 0.6%; Months Supply Down To 6.3 Months

--Median Home Sales Prices Up To $310,400

By Kevin Kastner, Brooke Migdon and Alexandra Kelley

     WASHINGTON (MNI) - New single-family home sales rose by 7.0% to a 

646,000 annual rate in June, led by a large rebound in the West, data 

released by the Commerce Department Wednesday showed. 

     The new home sales pace was below the 660,000 rate expected by an 

MNI survey of analysts and the Bloomberg consensus. 

     Here are the key findings from the release: 

     - New homes sales in May were revised down to a 604,000 pace from 

the 626,000 previously announced rate. The April pace was also revised 

down to 658,000 from the 679,000 pace that was previously reported. The 

second quarter average, at 636,000, was well below the first quarter 

average of 669,000 after the revisions are included. 

     - A regional analysis revealed that the slight increase in June 

headline sales was due to a significant rebound in the West (+50.4%), 

which was offset by declines in the Midwest (-26.3%) and Northeast 

(-4.2%) regions. 

     - The supply of new homes for sale increased by 0.6% in the month 

to a level of 338,000. However, the current level of supply is 9.4% 

higher than a year earlier, suggesting that supply continues to outpace 

demand for new home sales. 

     - Based on the movements in sales and supply in June, the months' 

supply declined to 6.3 months from the May months' supply of 6.7 months. 

The June months' supply was up from the 6.0 months level a year ago. 

Supply of new homes remains high relative to sales, as opposed to the 

very tight supply of existing homes available for sale. 

     - The median sales price rose 2.3% to $310,400 from $303,500 in 

May. The median price stands virtually unchanged from the $310,500 price 

level posted in June 2018.  

     ** MNI Washington Bureau (202) 371-2121 ** 

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