U.S. home sales drop 13.4% year-over-year in July

Sales of new single-family homes were up in July, according to the latest estimates from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau, released today. The numbers represent an increase of 6.8 percent, to 394,000 from 369,000, in July 2012. However, the figure is 13.4 percent lower than the June 2013 total of 455,000.

The median sales price for new houses sold in July was $257,200, and the average sales price was $322,700, the agency said. The seasonally adjusted estimate for new houses for sale at the end of July was 171,000 — 5.2 months’ supply at the current rate. — Hiten Samtani