New-home sales in the United States hit a record low annual pace in January, the U.S. Commerce Department reported. The troubling data released Thursday showed sales down 10.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 309,000, the worst showing on records going back to 1963. It also was weaker than the pace of 330,000 that economists expected, and broke the previous low record set in September 1981. Only the Northeast saw sales rise in January from the previous month. With sales continuing to fall, the number of unsold homes on the market is hitting record highs and the government said it would take 13.3 months at the current sales pace to exhaust supply. The inventory glut is forcing prices lower. The figures showed the median sales price fell to $201,100 in January, a record 9.9 percent drop from the previous month. The median price is the midpoint, where half sell for more and half for less. The average home price also dropped to $234,600 last month, a 9.8 percent decline from December. Economists believe home sales for February were probably also weak.
