US New Home Sales, August 2026 — Estimated 684,000 Annual Rate, +6.4% Not Statistically Significant; July Revised Up to 643,000
Census/HUD (Sept. 24): August 2026 new single-family home sales were estimated at a 684,000 annual rate, +6.4% (±19.5%), not significant. July was revised to 643,000 from 607,000.
Key figures (August 2026, released September 24, 2026)
New single-family houses sold: 684,000 at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). MoM: +6.4% (±19.5%)* vs revised July 643,000. YoY: –2.0% (±15.7%)* vs August 2025 (698,000).[1]
Estimated houses sold in August (not seasonally adjusted, preliminary): 57,000. Year to date: 450,000 (2025: 463,000), –2.9% (±5.1%).[1]
Median price: $393,700 (MoM +0.4% ±7.4%*; YoY –5.8% ±8.2%*). Average price: $478,700 (YoY –8.8% ±7.7%).[1]
For sale (end of August, SA): 483,000; months' supply: 8.5. Next release: October 27, 2026.[1]
Terms: MoM = change from July 2026; YoY = change from August 2025. Ranges are 90% confidence intervals and, per Census, "account only for sampling variability"; an asterisk (*) marks changes whose interval includes zero — Census: "If it does contain zero, the change is not statistically significant; that is, it is uncertain whether there was an increase or decrease."[1]
684,000 is an annual rate — and +6.4% is not a confirmed rise
Census footnotes that "Seasonally-adjusted houses sold are published at annual rates". The unadjusted, preliminary estimate of houses sold in August is 57,000 (Table 1b).[1]
The +6.4% monthly change carries a ±19.5% interval, and the –2.0% annual change ±15.7%: both include zero. Census adds: "It takes 4 months to establish a trend for new houses sold."[1]
July's 10.5% drop, revised
On August 25 Census reported July sales at 607,000, "10.5 percent (±14.0 percent)* below the June 2026 rate of 678,000" — itself not statistically significant.[2]
The August release now shows July at 643,000 and June at 672,000. By this page's calculation, using rounded published estimates, that is an upward revision of about 5.9% to July and a July decline of about 4.3% instead of 10.5%. Census notes the preliminary estimate is "revised about 6.7 percent" on average, so August's 684,000 may also move.[1][2]
Prices
The median price was $393,700 and the average $478,700. Only the average's year-over-year fall (–8.8%, ±7.7%) is not flagged as insignificant. Census cautions that price changes "reflect changes in the distribution of houses by region, size, etc., as well as changes in the prices of houses with identical characteristics."[1]
Share of August sales by price (not seasonally adjusted): under $300,000 — 22%; $300,000–$399,999 — 30%; $400,000–$499,999 — 22%; $500,000–$599,999 — 9%; $600,000–$799,999 — 10%; $800,000–$999,999 — 3%; $1,000,000 and over — 4%.[1]
By region (SAAR, thousands; change from July / from August 2025)
Northeast: 23 (–36.1% ±36.9%* / –20.7% ±55.1%*)[1]
Midwest: 98 (+84.9% ±51.2% / +22.5% ±46.1%*)[1]
South: 451 (+6.9% ±27.7%* / +3.4% ±23.1%*)[1]
West: 112 (–15.2% ±25.7%* / –26.8% ±22.9%)[1]
Asterisks are this page's marking of intervals that include zero, following the release's convention. Average relative standard errors of the regional sales estimates over the latest six-month period: Northeast 33%, Midwest 17%, South 10%, West 15%.[1]
Inventory and stage of construction
Of August's 684,000 annualized sales, 83,000 were not started, 248,000 under construction and 353,000 completed. Of the 483,000 houses for sale, 114,000 were not started, 256,000 under construction and 113,000 completed. Census defines a sale as a deposit taken or sales agreement signed, which can occur before a permit is issued.[1]
Verified facts
Each fact is labelled with its evidence typeEach fact in this section carries its evidence type — either cross-checked against independent sources, or confirmed from a single authoritative record.
Sales of new single-family houses in August 2026 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 684,000, 6.4 percent (±19.5 percent) above the revised July rate of 643,000 and 2.0 percent (±15.7 percent) below August 2025 (698,000); neither change is statistically significant at the 90 percent level.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
On a not seasonally adjusted basis, a preliminary estimated 57,000 new houses were sold in August 2026; year-to-date sales were 450,000 versus 463,000 in 2025, a change of -2.9 percent (±5.1 percent).[1] 1 source · authoritative record
The median sales price in August 2026 was $393,700 (0.4 percent above July and 5.8 percent below August 2025, neither significant); the average price was $478,700, 8.8 percent (±7.7 percent) below August 2025, a change Census does not mark as insignificant.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
New houses for sale at the end of August were 483,000 (seasonally adjusted), a supply of 8.5 months at the current sales rate.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Census's July 2026 release (August 25) put July sales at 607,000, 10.5 percent (±14.0 percent) below June's 678,000; the August release revises July to 643,000 and June to 672,000.[1][2] 1 source · authoritative record
Census states that it takes 4 months to establish a trend for new houses sold and that the preliminary seasonally adjusted estimate of total sales is revised about 6.7 percent on average.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Census footnotes that seasonally adjusted houses sold are published at annual rates, so the 684,000 headline is an annual rate, not a count of houses sold in August.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
The September 2026 report is scheduled for October 27, 2026.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Statements and readings
Not counted as facts — each item shows what kind of statement it isFrom here on: statements not counted as facts — single-source reports, the issuing body’s own statements, and this page’s own readings, each labeled.
Using rounded published estimates, the July estimate was revised up by about 5.9% (607,000 to 643,000). Using the revised June and July figures, July's decline is about 4.3% rather than the 10.5% first reported.[1][2] This page’s own calculation or reading · This page's calculation from the July and August releases
Among regional changes from July, only the Midwest increase (84.9%, ±51.2%) has a 90 percent confidence interval that excludes zero; from a year earlier, only the West decline (-26.8%, ±22.9%) does. These are significant at the 90% confidence level by the release's own rule.[1] This page’s own calculation or reading · This page's reading of Table 1a
Timeline
What this page could not establish
These are questions this page tried to answer and could not. The gaps are left open rather than filled with a guess.- Why the Midwest's sales estimate nearly doubled from July
- The revised August figure
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 10/05/2026, 10:00
- Body characters
- 3,032
- Sources
- 2 sources adopted
- Model
- ChatGPT (checked sources on the web)
- Time
- 10/05/2026, 09:43
- Verdict
- Revision required
Show revision history (3)
| 10/05/2026, 09:00 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
| 10/05/2026 | First version. Read the August and July 2026 New Residential Sales releases in full, including explanatory notes and Tables 1-3; quotations, table rows and figures machine-matched against the release text. | Updated |
| 10/05/2026 | Independent pre-publication review (ChatGPT) against the sources; findings confirmed by the source text were applied. | Updated |
Frequently asked
How many new homes were sold in August 2026?
684,000 at a seasonally adjusted annual rate; the unadjusted, preliminary estimate of houses sold during August itself is 57,000.[1]
Did new home sales really rise 6.4% in August 2026?
That is the estimate, but the ±19.5% confidence interval includes zero, so Census cannot say whether sales rose or fell.[1]
What was the median price of a new home in August 2026?
$393,700, versus $417,900 in August 2025; the 5.8% decline is not statistically significant.[1]
What happened to the July new home sales figure?
It was first reported at 607,000 (-10.5%) and revised to 643,000 in the August release.[1][2]
How many months' supply of new homes is there?
8.5 months at the August sales rate, with 483,000 houses for sale.[1]
When is the next new home sales report?
September 2026 data are scheduled for October 27, 2026.[1]