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NEW-HOME SALES TOP ONE MILLION IN '03, SET NEW RECORD
| Sales of new single-family homes topped one million units in 2003, establishing a new record high for the third consecutive year, according to a recent U.S. Dept. of Commerce report. "The sales pace has been excellent throughout the last six months, primarily fueled by low mortgage rates and strong house-price performance, and the market fundamentals are in place for this pace to continue into early 2004," said Bobby Rayburn, president of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Total new single-family home sales for 2003 reached 1.085 million, up 11.5 percent from the previous annual record of 973,000 in 2002, according to the report. New home sales hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.060 million units in December, down 5.5 percent from November's revised pace of 1.117 million units. Three regions recorded record-high sales for 2003, according to the report: the Midwest had 189,000 sales, the South posted 512,000 sales and the West registered 306,000 sales. Sales in the Northeast topped 79,000, a 21.5 percent increase compared to 2002. For the month, the sales pace across all regions was mixed. The inventory of new homes for sale was 374,000 at the end of 2003, a 4.3-months supply at the December sales pace. |