home sales fell 1.6 percent last month to an annual rate of 438,000, the second consecutive monthly decline. In October, new-home sales fell 2.2 percent to a rate of 445,000. The construction market has shown little growth this year and continues to lag the broader economic recovery that started more than five years ago. Only 399,000 new homes were purchased in the first 11 months of the year, a slight 0.2 percent improvement from the same period in 2013. New-home sales remain well below the annual rate of 700,000 seen in the1990s. Rising home prices and stagnant wages have made houses unaffordable for many potential buyers.
