WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Sales of new homes rose for the fourth month in a row in July, rising an estimated 9.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. The seasonally adjusted sales rate was the highest since last September. The fourth consecutive increase in sales adds to the growing body of evidence that the market is finally growing again after sinking to a record-low sales pace of 329,000 in January. Sales in July were 13.4% lower than a year earlier. Inventories of unsold new homes fell 3.2% in July to 271,000, the lowest in 16 years. The median sales price of a new home fell to $210,100, down 11.5% compared with a year earlier.
