In February, New-Home Sales Rebounded From Three-Year Low

Sales of new homes in America probably rebounded last month from a three-year low, a sign the worst of the real estate rout has passed.

Purchases rose to an annual pace of 990,000, up 5.7% from January, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News ahead of a Commerce Department report today. The National Association of Realtors last week said sales of previously owned homes rose by the most in three years.

Improving sales will help builders trim a glut of unsold homes, paving the way for construction gains later in the year and tempering the biggest source of weakness in the economy. The figures are a respite for an industry plagued by concerns that defaults on subprime mortgages will derail a market rebound.

The housing market is "fairly well along in the process of rebalancing," chief economist at National City Corp. in Cleveland, Richard DeKaser, said. Subprime mortgage defaults don't "have the heft to bring the entire market down."