Having slipped a nominal 0.2 percent in January, the seasonally adjusted pace of new single-family home sales in the U.S. jumped 7.8 percent in February to an annual rate of 539,000.
New home sales in the U.S. are now running at a pace which is nearly 25 percent higher than at the same time last year, but the February pace remains 17 percent below than the long-term average of 652,000.
The pace of new single-family home sales in January peaked at 1,319,000 in 2005, 145 percent higher than last month.
In the West, the pace of new home sales slipped 6.0 percent from January to February but is running 34.0 percent higher versus the same time last year, up from 5.0 percent higher on a year-over-year basis in January.
And in terms of inventory, the number of new single-family homes for sale in the U.S. is currently 210,000, 12.9 percent higher than at the same time last year, down from 15.3 percent higher on a year-over-year basis in January.