Sales of new U.S. single-family homes fell more than expected in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years the previous month, the government reported Tuesday. The Commerce Department said sales of new homes fell 4.6 percent to an annual rate of 411,000 last month. Sales jumped 13.1 percent in January to the strongest pace since September 2008. Compared with a year earlier, February sales were up 12.3 percent, and the median price of a new home sold last month was up 2.9 percent, both indicating the housing-market recovery was continuing. However, sales are being limited by a lack of supply of homes on the market in some parts of the country. While the inventory of new homes on the market rose 1.3 percent to 152,000 units, it was not far above record lows. At the February sales pace, it would take 4.4 months to clear the inventory of houses on the market, up from 4.2 months in December. However, a supply of six months is normally considered a healthy balance between supply and demand. The lower supply of homes should drive up prices for new homes.
