Low number of families moving into new homes

The rate of families moving into newly constructed homes is now at its second-lowest level in history, according to new government statistics.

According to figures from the Commerce Department, there were approximately 288,000 new homes sold last month, unchanged from July after that month's sales figures were adjusted upward. Officials had previously said that July's sales were the lowest on record. However, those figures still show a 29 percent drop compared with a year ago.

The supply of available new homes dropped to 206,000, the lowest mark in more than 40 years, despite reduced demand. At current sales rates, there is an 8.6-month supply of new homes available on the market - a slight drop from 8.7 during July.

Prices on those homes also continued to decline, as the median price for new homes dropped 0.6 percent from last month and 1.2 percent from August of last year to just over $204,000 - making new homes more affordable for moving families if they are able to sell their previous home.

The continued low demand for new homes comes just a few days after the government said that construction on new single-family homes had increased by 4.3 percent last month, meaning that even more homes may be available for relocation in the coming months.