New Home Sales Rise 7.3% in April

New home sales climbed 7.3% in April, two months after falling to a record low in February, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

Sales rose to an annual rate of 323,000 from a revised 301,000 in March that was higher than the originally reported 300,000 pace.

Economists had forecast the April rate to be 300,000, Bloomberg reported.

The median price gained 4.6% from the same month in 2010.

Sales rose in all four regions, particularly the West, which experienced at 15% jump. 



New home sales account for about 15% of residential real estate sales. Rising home sales can mean more business for flatbed trucking companies that haul building materials and dry van freight carriers that haul household appliances and furniture.