Having jumped an estimated 7.8 percent in February, the seasonally adjusted pace of new single-family home sales in the U.S. reversed course and dropped 11.4 percent in March.
New home sales in the U.S. are now running at an annual pace of 481,000, which is 19.4 percent higher than at the same time last year (versus 25 percent higher on a year-over-year basis in February), but the March pace remains 17 percent below than the long-term average of 652,000.
The pace of new single-family home sales in March peaked at 1,328,000 in 2005, 176 percent higher than last month.
In the West, the pace of new home sales slipped 3.4 percent from February to March but is running 57.3 percent higher versus the same time last year.
And in terms of inventory, the number of new single-family homes for sale in the U.S. is currently 213,000, 12.1 percent higher than at the same time last year and 1.9 percent higher than the month before.