New-home purchases fall, 2011 worst ever for sales
Fewer people bought new homes in December. The decline made 2011 the worst year for new -homes sales on records dating back nearly half a century.
The Commerce Department said Thursday new-home sales fell 2.2 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 307,000. The pace is less than half the 700,000 that economists say must be sold in a healthy economy.
About 302,000 new homes were sold last year. That’s less than the 323,000 sold in 2010, making last year’s sales the worst on records dating back to 1963. And it coincides with a report last week that said 2011 was the weakest year for single-family home construction on record.
“Washington State’s largest combined home and garden event introduces visitors to a huge range of products and services by over 1,000 exhibits–providing a “one-stop” shopping and information-gathering experience for show goers.
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