New single-family home sales in December rose to their highest level in eight months and prices were the highest since April 2008, raising cautious optimism for a housing market recovery. Sales jumped 17.5 percent after a downwardly in November. Compared to December a year earlier, sales were down 7.6 percent. Economists saw the gains as significant. "Clearly we are seeing stabilization in new home sales and this data suggests some upward momentum that we have seen in existing home sales. What is important to realize is even in a period of softer new home sales, inventory continues to decline, said Dean Maki, chief U.S.. economist with Barclays Capital in New York. Brian Bethune, an economist with HIS Global Insight in Lexington, Mass added: "It's meaningful to the extent that there is a pattern of numbers showing increases. It's a sign that there is a turnaround. Things are definitely perking up, but there is a question whether it's sustainable.”
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