April New Home Sales: Mortgage Rates Stunt Growth

There were 591,000 new home sales nationwide in April (SAAR), down 16.6% from March and 26.9% from April 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The median sales price of new houses sold in April 2022 was $450,600.
The seasonally-adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of April was 444,000, a supply of 9.0 months at the current sales rate.

New residential sales declined considerably in April – marking the lowest annualized rate since April 2020. With interest rates rising more than 2 percentage points since the start of the year alongside record-breaking home value appreciation, it is likely many prospective buyers are rethinking what they can afford. Builders may also be recalibrating for the shifting environment, with material and labor supply shortages continuing to slow construction progress. Despite this, builders are demonstrating some eagerness when it comes to starting projects, though a growing backlog of unfinished homes could be a sign the challenges are starting to catch up with them.