New home sales resumed their upward march in September, rising above August sales which had retreated significantly from a near decade-long high of 629,000 units set in July.  The Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development said newly constructed homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 593,000 in September, up 3.1 percent from August.  The number was an improvement however only because the sales rate for August was revised down from the original report of 609,000 units to 575,000.  September sales were 29.8 percent higher than a year earlier when the estimate was 457,000

The September results were in the middle of the range of analysts' expectations. According to Econoday, predictions varied between 570,000 and 635,000 with a consensus of 601,000.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis there were 46,000 homes sold compared to 47,000 in August.

Sales in the Northeast were up 33.3 percent from August and were 60.0 percent higher than in September 2015.  The Midwest saw an increase of 8.6 percent for the month and 33.3 percent year-over-year.  Sales in the South rose 3.4 percent and 25.7 percent from the two earlier periods while in the West there was a decline of 4.5 percent from August while sales remained 32.4 percent higher than a year earlier.

The median price of a homes sold in September was $313,500 compared to 307,600 in September 2015.  The average price was $377,700, up from $367,800.

At the end of September there were an estimated 243,000 new homes available for sale, a 4.8-month supply.  A year ago the inventory of available homes was estimated at 5.8-month supply at the then current sales rate.  Of homes currently for sale 141,000 are under construction and 57,000 are complete.