A modest drop in mortgage rates led to a surprisingly large jump in new home sales in August, though the figure may be revised downward in the coming month. Sales of newly built single-family homes jumped 20.5% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 800,000 from an upwardly revised reading in July, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The pace of new home sales is up 15.4% from a year earlier. The three-month moving average of new home sales was 713,000, an increase from 656,000 in July. However, the Census Bureau’s estimate is often volatile and subject to significant revisions. Despite the increase in estimated August sales, NAHB expects a gradual improvement in new home sales, supported by a recent interest rate cut and a downturn trend in mortgage rates.