Eric Veronikis covers state government, real estate and Dauphin County. He has been with the Central Penn Business Journal since 2006. 
The number of new house sales dropped 33 percent in May compared with April, the U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday. Economists pointed fingers at the end of the federal first-time and second-time homebuyer tax credit program that stopped April 30 for the decline.
The association does not track the sale of new houses, but Thompson said many of the association’s members are seeing an increase in sales.
His company, Cumberland County-based Home Designs Unlimited Inc., sold 15 custom-built houses during the first half of year, which is about the same amount it sold the previous 18 months, he said. Thompson, president of Home Designs, said the company sells houses starting at $299,000. Many of its customers are buying houses priced at $379,000 and are taking options that increase them to $399,000, he said.
Pennsylvania seems to always buck the negative national homebuilding trends, he said.
“Things aren’t 100 percent normal,” Thompson said. “But in this area, we are seeing a drastic increase.”
Home Designs has diversified, spread its footprint and included lower-price houses in its arsenal of models to improve its sales, Thompson said.
