New-Home Sales Rise as Builders Offer Deals on Mortgage Rates

Sales of newly built homes surged in August as climbing mortgage rates drove budget-conscious buyers toward home builders' rate buydowns. Contract signings for new-construction properties reached a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 684,000 last month, up 6.4% compared to July, the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported Thursday. However, the August sales figure was down 2% from a year ago, At the same time, the prices of new builds ticked up, with August's median sales price registering at $393,700, up 0.4% from July's $392,200. Annually, the median new-home price shed 5.8% from August 2025's $417,900. Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors (NAR)® reported earlier this month that existing home sales retreated in August, down 2% month over month and 1.2% year over year to an seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million. However, pending home sales rose slightly in August on a monthly basis but fell compared to year-ago levels, reported NAR. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. Snejana Farberov is a reporter at Realtor.com covering the U.S. housing market and the latest domestic real estate trends. She has worked...