WASHINGTON • Sales of new U.S. single-family homes surged to a sixmonth high in September, but higher house price are making homeownership less affordable for some first-time buyers.

New home sales jumped 14% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 800,000 units last month, the highest level since March, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. August’s sales pace was revised down to 702,000 units from the previously reported 740,000 units. Sales increased in the populous South, as well as in the West and Northeast. They fell in the Midwest.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales, which account for more than 10% of U.S. home sales, increasing to a rate of 760,000 units. Sales dropped 17.6% on a year-over-year basis in September. They peaked at a rate of 993,000 units in January, which was the highest since 2006.

The median new house price accelerated 18.7% in September to $408,800 from a year ago. Sales continued to be concentrated in the $200,000-$749,000 range.

REUTERS