New Home Sales Dip 1% in June

July 26, 2011 10:10 AM, EDT

New home sales fell for the second straight month in June, declining 1% to 312,000, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

Economists had forecast the June rate to be 320,000, Bloomberg reported.

The median price increased 7.2% from the same month in 2010 to $235,200.

Sales fell in two of four regions, led by a 16% drop in the Northeast to an all-time low. Demand fell 13% in the West, but climbed 9.5% in the Midwest and rose 3.4% in the South.

New home sales account for about 15% of residential real estate sales. Rising home sales can mean more business for flatbed trucking companies that haul building materials and dry van freight carriers that haul household appliances and furniture.