Home Sales Set Records for Nov. and the Year

New-home purchases surged to a record high in November, and, even without December’s figure, 1998 is already the best year for new-home sales since the government began tracking them 35 years ago.

Americans bought new homes at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 965,000 in November, up 7.6% from October and surpassing the previous record rate of 919,000, set in June, the Commerce Department said.

November’s increase, the third in a row, was the largest in a year. The 823,000 homes sold during the first 11 months of the year have already established an annual record.

Analysts believe unusually warm weather in November gave sales an added boost for the month, and they predicted sales will slide a bit this year.

The housing boom--and home buyers’ consequent need for items such as furniture and appliances--is helping the U.S. economy weather the negative effects U.S. factories and farms are feeling from the global economic slump.

Home sales rose in all regions of the country. In the West, they increased 5.4%. They jumped 20.5% in the Northeast, rose 9.9% in the South and edged up 0.6% in the Midwest.