US new home sales slid by 14.7% in December to the lowest monthly level on record, capping a year that showed a 37.8% drop, the government said today.
The Commerce Department said December sales of new one-family houses fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331,000, the lowest since data collection began in 1963.
That was 14.7% below the revised November figure and 44.8%t below the December 2007 estimate.
An estimated 482,000 new homes were sold in 2008, 37.8% below the 2007 figure of 776,000, the agency said, highlighting the meltdown in property after years of sizzling growth.
The average home sales price fell 6% in the month to $206,500, the weakest since December 2003. The only positive news was a drop in the glut of new homes for sale.
The inventory of homes fell 10.1% to 357,000, the lowest since September 2003. In light of weak demand, this still represents a 12.9% supply at the current sales pace, the highest since 1963.
The latest data underscores the massive decline in the US housing market following a bubble that began to burst more than two years ago.
Another report earlier this week showed prices falling for 28 consecutive months in the 20 major US cities. Prices in that survey showed a 25% drop from the 2006 peak but no sign of stabilising.
The housing meltdown has led to massive losses in the worldwide financial sector that bet heavily on the sector, sparking a credit crunch that has roiled the global economy.
