Sales of new homes in the United States rose in May, surprising economists who had been forecasting that housing would slow down because of rising mortgage rates.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported today that sales of new single-family homes increased by 4.6% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.234 million units. The median price of homes sold did decline to US235,300, a drop of 4.3% from the April sales price.

Analysts are still looking for sales of both new and existing homes to fall by around 10% this year as rising mortgage rates crimp demand. The lowest mortgage rates in four decades helped to propel sales to five straight annual records.