New Home Sales Fall From Record Pace

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ew home sales in the United States fell 0.8%in June from a record pace in May, but it was still the second-fastest on record, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Home sales fell to a 1.326 million annual rate in June, from 1.337 million the month before. Economists had expected sales would fall to a 1.272 annual rate, Bloomberg reported.

Rising home sales likely means more business for flatbed trucking companies that haul building materials and dry van freight that haul household appliances and furniture.

A total of 1.17 million new homes will probably be sold this year, besting the record sold last year by 7.4%, a cording to a forecast from the National Association of Home Builders.

ales of new homes dropped 14.2% in the Northeast to 91,000 at an annual rate, 13.1% in the West to a 338,000 rate, and 2.9% in the Midwest to 201,000. They also rose 9.6% in the South to a record 696,000.

New home sales account for 15% of the market and are considered a harbinger of the resale market for previously owned homes. Sales of new homes are counted when a contract is signed, while resales are tabulated at the contract's close a month or two later.

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