WASHINGTON — US sales of new homes jumped last month to the highest level in more than two years, further evidence of a sustained housing recovery that could help lift the lackluster economy.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new home sales rose 5.7 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 389,000. That’s up from a rate of 368,000 in August and the highest rate since April 2010, when a federal home buyer tax credit inflated sales.