Hijjah 18, 1431 / Nov. 24, 2010, SPA -- New U.S. home sales fell unexpectedly in October and prices dropped to a seven-year low, a government report showed on Wednesday, pointing to a weak housing market. The Commerce Department said sales dropped 8.1 percent to a 283,000-unit annual rate after a 308,000-unit pace in September. Analysts expected home sales to rise to a 310,000-unit pace in October. New home sales were down 28.5 percent compared to October of last year. The median sale price for a new home dropped a record 13.9 percent last month from September, the lowest since October 2003. Compared to October last year, the media price fell 9.4 percent, the largest drop since July 2009.
