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Sales of new American homes plunged in February to the fewest on records dating back nearly half a century, a dismal sign for an already-weak housing market.
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, _' f p# H3 Z$ _! L; cThe Commerce Department said Wednesday new home sales fell 16.9 per cent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 250,000 homes. It's the third straight monthly decline and far below the 700,000-a-year pace that economists view as healthy., ?+ k7 ]5 I; }; n! ?3 b
" d( f& \( n; i5 n" X) DThe median price of a new home dropped nearly 14 per cent to $202,100, the lowest since December 2003. New home prices are now 30 percent higher than of those being resold.
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" j8 y! ]- k. J/ C( pBuilders have struggled to compete with a wave of foreclosures that has lowered the price of previously occupied homes. High unemployment, tight credit and uncertainty over prices have also kept many potential buyers from making purchases. |
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