The Commerce Department said Monday that new US home sales rose 11 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 384,000 homes from an upwardly revised May rate of 346,000. This is the largest monthly gain in more than eight months. However, sales are still down 21.3 percent against year ago level, when new homes sold estimate was 488,000.

During the housing boom four years ago, the sales rate was 1,374,000 which was more than 3 times the current sales rate.

The last time sales dramatically spiked as this was in December 2000.

The median price paid for a house sold in June 2009 was down about 3% to $206,200; the mean price was $276,900.

Sales have risen for third straight month. The median sales price of new houses sold in June 2009 was $206,200, down 12 percent from last year’s level of $234,300 and down almost 6 percent May’s $219,000 figure.

The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of June was 281,000, down more than 4 percent compared to May. This represents a supply of 8.8 months at the current sales pace and the lowest level since October 2007.

With the current developments, builders’ confidence have improved as such the pace of construction improved in June as they began building single-family housing units at 470,000, a 14.4 percent climb over May.