Sales of new U.S. single-family homes slipped 0.6% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 652,000, according to the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The reading topped economists’ expectations of roughly 630,000 but followed an upward revision that put June’s pace at 656,000. The median price of a new home fell to $403,800, down 0.8% from June and 5.9% from a year earlier. Builders ended the month with 499,000 houses on the market, equal to 9.2 months of supply at the current sales rate, virtually unchanged from June and well above year-earlier levels. Financing costs continued to ease. Freddie Mac said the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate declined to 6.56% in the week ended Aug. 28, the lowest since late October 2024. Even so, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s gauge of total mortgage applications edged down 0.5% in the week to Aug. 22 after a larger drop the prior week. Forward-looking indicators remain subdued. The National Association of Realtors’ pending home-sales index fell 0.4% in July to 71.7, missing forecasts for a smaller decline. Economists say the combination of softer demand, sliding prices and marginally lower borrowing costs points to a housing market that is stabilizing but still constrained by affordability.