The FINANCIAL — WASHINGTON (August 29, 2018) — Pending home sales stepped back in July and have now fallen on an annual basis for seven straight months, according to the National Association of Realtors.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, decreased 0.7 percent to 106.2 in July from 107.0 in June. With last month’s decline, contract signings are now down 2.3 percent year-over-year.
Earlier this week, NAR released commentary reflecting on the past decade since the beginning of the Great Recession. Although supply and affordability headwinds are the biggest issue right now, Yun said it is important to note just how much the housing market has recovered since the depths of the financial crisis. Today, thanks to several years of solid job growth, as well as safe lending and regulatory policy reforms, foreclosures sit near historic lows and record high home values have helped millions of households build substantial wealth.
Yun expects existing-home sales this year to decrease 1.0 percent to 5.46 million, and the national median existing-home price to increase around 5.0 percent. Looking ahead to next year, existing sales are forecast to increase 2 percent and home prices around 3.5 percent.
July Pending Home Sales Regional Breakdown
The PHSI in the Northeast climbed 1.0 percent to 94.6 in July, but is still 2.3 percent below a year ago. In the Midwest the index inched up 0.3 percent to 102.2 in July, but is still 1.5 percent lower than July 2017.
Pending home sales in the South declined 1.7 percent to an index of 122.1 in July, and are 0.9 percent below a year ago. The index in the West decreased 0.9 percent in July to 94.7, and is 5.8 percent below a year ago.
The National Association of Realtors is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.3 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
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