2017.10.2523:12:00UTC+00U.S. New Home Sales Jump in Wake of Hurricanes

Sales of newly-constructed home unexpectedly surged in September to the highest level since 2007 as activity surged in the Southern region after hurricanes Harvey and Irma, according to official government data on Wednesday.

Single-family home sales surged 18.9 percent month-on-month to an annualized rate of 667, 000, the strongest since October 2007. The biggest monthly increase in home sales since January 1992 reflected a jump in the number of properties in which groundbreaking activity have not yet started. The level of 263, 000 was the highest since January 2007 and indicates that residential building will pick up in the coming months as companies get busy fulfilling orders.

The increase was fueled by an increase in home sales in the Northern and Southern parts of the U.S., where purchases increased by 33.3 percent and 25.8 percent respectively. Purchases in the South, devastated by a string of weather catastrophes, rose month-on-month to 405, 000, the fastest rate since July 2007.

Average prices of new homes increased 1.6 percent year-on-year to $319, 000. Meanwhile, Supply of available homes at current sales rate fell to 5 months from 6 months, with 279, 000 new houses available on the market at the end of September.