New home sales pop in March

New home sales rebounded in March, gaining 11.1% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 300,000 from an upwardly revised 270,000 in February. That left sales slightly ahead of economists' projections, but still at a very low level. The number of homes for sale sank to another multi-decade low of 183,000, while the median price of a home rose 2.9% from February to a level of $213,000. That's still 4.9% from a year ago however, underscoring the fact that builders are having a difficult time competing against deeply discounted foreclosures and other used homes.