In June, new residential home sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 350,000 per year, according to a release. Sales were at a revised rate of 382,000 in May. In a healthy economy, between 1 million and 1.5 million homes would be built in the United States, said Creighton Cox, executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Greater Des Moines.

The decline in home sales was the biggest drop in a year, according to Reuters. Although sales declined from May, June’s new residential sales were 15.1 percent higher than in June 2011.

For the fourth day in a row, the Standard and Poor’s 500 index dropped as the stock market responded to this and other disappointing economic reports, quarterly earnings reports and worries in Europe, according to Reuters.

The median sales price of homes in June was about $232,600, and the average was $273,900.