Sales of new U.S. single-family homes fell in December for a second consecutive month, but sales for all of 2013 climbed to the highest level in five years, the government reported Monday. The Commerce Department said new-home sales fell 7 percent to an annual rate of 414,000 units last month. In November, sales had fallen 3.9 percent to a 445,000-unit pace. Economists had expected a smaller decline in December. The recent declines were likely related to October's surprising 14.9 percent spike in sales and may have reflected cold weather that covered much of the country in December. For the whole year, new-home sales were up 16.4 percent to 428,000, the highest level since 2008 and the second consecutive year that sales have grown after six consecutive annual declines. Sales of new homes peaked at 1.28 million in 2005. Analysts expect further gains in 2014.
