NAR released a summary of pending home sales data showing that September’s pending home sales rose 7.4% from last month and increased 2.6% from a year ago.
Pending sales represent homes with a signed contract to purchase but have yet to close. They tend to lead existing-home sales data by one to two months.
Two of the four regions showed increases in sales from a year ago. The West region had the biggest gain (12.3%), followed by the Northeast with an increase of 3.3%. The Midwest region and the South experienced no gain from a year ago.
From last month, all four regions showed increases in contract signings. The West had the biggest increase of 9.8%, followed by the Midwest with a gain of 7.1%. The South rose 6.7%, followed by the Northeast with the smallest gain of 6.5%.
The U.S. pending home sales index level for the month of September was 75.8.
September’s contract signings bring the pending index below the 100-level mark for the 30th consecutive month.
The 100 level is based on a 2001 benchmark and is consistent with existing-home sales above the 5 million mark.
