New-Home Sales Drop
Sales of new homes in the U.S. fell for the second consecutive month in February, an indication that the housing market remains shaky in the aftermath of a severe bust.</br></br>New-home sales decreased by 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 313,000 from January, the Commerce Department said Friday. It was the second-straight monthly decline and the lowest reading since October 2011.</br></br>The results were worse than expected. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast sales last month would climb by 1.2% to an annual rate of 325,000.</br></br>In addition, January's sales were revised downward to 318,000 from an initially reported 321,000. That was a decline of 5.4% from December.</br></br>However, new-home sales were up 11.4% compared with February 2011. And prices have stabilized: The median price of a new home was $233,700 last month, up 6.2% from February 2011.