New estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development show sales of newly built single-family homes up 12.3 percent from last year. The improvement is good news for the new home market but comes at the same time month-over-month numbers are falling. In July, for example, new home sales fell 2.4 percent from June, the third consecutive monthly decline. Still, despite a slow summer, recent data – including housing starts and builder confidence – shows an overall upward trend for the new home market. Optimism is building based on an increase in buyer traffic and improved inventory levels. In fact, at the current sales pace, there was a six-month supply of new homes available for sale at the end of July. Generally, a six-month supply is considered to be a healthy market. Also, the median sales price of new homes sold in July was $269,800. That is the lowest median sales price since October 2013. More here.