Home sales sink in February: HIA

By a staff reporter, with AAP

New home sales fell sharply in February, after four consecutive months of growth, according to the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

The HIA new home sales report showed Australian home sales tumbled 5.3 per cent in the month, seasonally adjusted, following a 4.2 per cent lift in January.

The fall came on the back of a four per cent decrease in detached house sales and an 11 per cent drop in multi-unit sales.

HIA senior economist, Shane Garrett said the decline was a reminder of the delicate nature of the nascent housing industry recovery but that the overall direction of the industry was "quite encouraging".

"The industry is struggling in the current economic environment and strong policy measures will be required to bring market activity back up to levels consistent with Australia’s long term requirements,” Mr Garrett said.

However, Western Australia and Queensland posted increases of 1.9 per cent and 0.8 per cent respectively.