The surge in sales was a welcome positive sign during a tenuous period for the U.S. economy. However, high prices and high mortgage rates continue to curb homebuyers, new HUD data shows.
Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
Sales of newly built single-family homes continued their upwards trajectory in March, as buyers got their first taste of the spring market, the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development announced in a report released Wednesday.
The report findings were a welcome positive sign for the U.S. economy, which has been on shaky ground since the Trump administration unleashed a global trade war in recent weeks, but also a reminder that next month’s report may reflect less positively as the country continues to respond to new tariffs.
TAKE THE INMAN INTEL SURVEY FOR APRIL
New-home sales rose 6 percent on an annual basis in March 2025 for a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 724,000, well-exceeding analysts expectations of a rate of about 680,000. They were also up 7.4 percent month over month from the February 2025 rate of 674,000.
The median sales price of new homes sold during March 2025 was $403,600, down 7.5 percent year over year. The average sales price of new homes sold was $497,700, down 4.7 percent year over year.
By the end of March 2025, the seasonally adjusted estimate of new homes for sale was 503,000, up 0.6 percent from February 2025 and up 7.9 percent from March 2024. That figure represents 8.3 months supply at the current sales rate.
The South drove the growth of new-home sales between February 2025 and March 2025, increasing by 13.6 percent. Meanwhile, the Northeast took the greatest hit in sales of newly built homes, declining by 22.2 percent month over month.
Despite beating expectations, new-home sales are still being curbed by high home prices and mortgage rates, Robert Frick, corporate economist with Navy Federal Credit Union said in a statement sent to Inman.
“March sales were a nice recovery from the dip in January and February, probably due to the frigid weather across much of the country,” Frick said. “But sales remain stuck in a post-COVID range of about 630 to 730, a level that reflects high prices and high mortgage rates.”
Email Lillian Dickerson
