New-Home Sales Rise - NYTimes.com Sales of new homes in the United States increased 3.3 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 343,000, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, and the rise was latest signal that the housing market was steadily improving. Sales were up in all regions except the South, the monthly report said. The median price rose to $235,700, a slight increase from March. Even with the gain, the pace of new-home sales was well below the 700,000 annual rate that economists equate with healthy markets. Still, the broad gains across the country contributed to growing evidence that the home market could finally be rebounding nearly five years after the housing bubble burst. A pickup in hiring and cheaper mortgages, combined with lower home prices in most markets, has made home buying more attractive. Builder confidence has increased steadily since the fall. On Tuesday, the National Association of Realtors said sales of previously owned homes increased 3.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.62 million. That nearly matched January's sales pace of 4.63 million, which had been the best in two years. Though new homes represent less than 20 percent of the housing market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to statistics compiled by the National Association of Home Builders. Mortgage rates, meanwhile, have fallen to record lows, making home buying more affordable. Still, many would-be buyers are having difficulty qualifying for home loans or can't afford larger down payments required by banks.