US new home sales fall in December; inventory declines

WASHINGTON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Sales of new U.S. single-family homes fell in December, but builders made progress in reducing an inventory bloat, potentially allowing them to break ground on more new housing projects.

New home sales dropped 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 745,000 units, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Friday. Sales increased to a rate of 758,000 units in November from 656,000 in October. The data was delayed by last year's shutdown of the government.

New home sales account for a small share of U.S. home sales and tend to be volatile on a month-to-month basis. They are counted at the signing of a contract. New home sales advanced 3.8% on a year-over-year basis in December.

New housing inventory fell to 472,000 units in December from 485,000 units in November. The inventory of homes under construction was the lowest in nearly 4-1/2 years. At December's sales pace, it would take 7.6 months to clear the supply of new houses on the market, down from 7.7 months in November.

The median new house price increased 4.2% to $414,400 in December from a year earlier.

The housing market could get a lift from mortgage rates. The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage declined to 6.01% this week, the lowest level since September 2022, from 6.09% last week, data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac showed.