
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, May 31, 1990                   TAG: 9005310132
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-11   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

NEW HOME SALES DROP AGAIN

New home sales plummeted in April to their lowest level since the nation's economy emerged from the 1981-82 recession, the government said Wednesday.

Analysts attributed the fifth consecutive decline to continued double-digit mortgage rates.

The Commerce Department reported that new home sales totaled a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 units in April, the smallest number since 521,000 units were sold in December 1982.

Mortgage rates peaked at 10.67 percent during the first week in May and had fallen to 10.33 percent by last Friday.

Thomas Holloway, an economist with the Mortgage Bankers Association, said the recent decline may help sales in the near-term but that rates would track in the range of 10.25 percent to 10.5 percent for the rest of the year.

However, John A. Tuccillo, chief economist with the National Association of Realtors, said, "We expect mortgage rates to trend downward in the summer, which should spur sales of new homes and existing homes."

by CNB