new home sales

Most homebuilders saw their shares pop higher Tuesday after heavyweight Lennar released better-than-expected quarterly numbers -- but not KB Home. In fact, its shares actually fell. Here's why KB isn't invited to the housing recovery party.

Sales of U.S. new homes fell in February for the second straight month, a reminder that the depressed housing market remains weak despite some improvement. But the Commerce Department also reported some positive signs.

With 2012's first earnings season well under way, let's go over some of the items that will help shape the week that lies ahead: Here's why you should be watching one major mall owner, two tech giants, three homebuilders and a couple of old media behemoths.

Fewer people bought new homes in December, making 2011 the worst sales year on record. The Commerce Department said Thursday new-home sales fell last month to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 307,000. The pace is less than half the 700,000 that economists say must be sold in a healthy economy.

Americans bought slightly more new homes in November, but 2011 will likely end up as the worst year for sales in history. The Commerce Department says new-home sales rose 1.6 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 315,000. That's less than half the 700,000 new homes that economists say should be sold to sustain a healthy housing market.

Sales of new homes rose in September after four straight monthly declines, largely because builders cut their prices in the face of depressed demand. Analysts say the modest increase on the back of reduced prices suggests the struggling housing market is years away from a turnaround.

Cassandra and her husband have seen major life changes in the past few months: A new house in the NYC suburbs, bills that suddenly exceed his salary, and a new business for her. But though her consulting firm is thriving, now she's got a different problem: how to properly take money out of it. DailyFinance drafted an expert to help.

For homebuilders, it hardly feels like an economic recovery. Nearly two years after the recession ended, the pace of construction is less than half the level considered healthy. That weakness is weighing on the economy: Though new homes represent a small portion of overall sales, they have an outsized effect on jobs.

If you're trying to decide whether it's time to consider buying a house, the best clues can be found in the new and existing home inventory numbers. And despite all the other positive indicators, those figures are still much too high for comfort.

The latest reports on home sales and prices offer a complicated and conflicted picture. But when the data are taken together, one thing is clear: Weighing risk and reward, it's worth waiting a few months to see which way the real estate winds are really blowing.