The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development have released new residential sales statistics for August 2024. The report indicates that sales of new single-family houses were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 716,000. This figure is 4.7 percent below the revised July rate of 751,000 but shows an increase of 9.8 percent from the August 2023 estimate of 652,000.
In terms of pricing, the median sales price for new houses sold in August was $420,600, while the average sales price stood at $492,700.
Regarding inventory and supply, there were an estimated 467,000 new houses for sale at the end of August on a seasonally-adjusted basis. This represents a supply of 7.8 months at the current sales rate.
"The September report is scheduled for release on October 24, 2024," noted officials. More detailed information can be accessed through the Economic Briefing Room on the Census Bureau's website.
The statistics are derived from sample surveys and are subject to sampling variability as well as nonsampling errors such as bias and variance from response rates, nonreporting, and undercoverage. According to explanatory notes provided by both agencies: "Whenever a statement such as '2.5 percent (±3.2%) above' appears in the text, this indicates the range (-0.7 to +5.7 percent) in which the actual percent change is likely to have occurred."
These estimates take into account confidence intervals that account only for sampling variability; if a range does not contain zero, it implies statistical significance.
For developers interested in housing statistics data integration or custom app creation using these metrics, further details can be found via the Census Bureau’s application programming interface (API). Additionally, updates on key economic indicators are available through FRED Mobile App by downloading it on Apple or Android devices.
