According to the National Association of Realtors, pending home sales increased in July up to the highest reading in over a decade. This recent Housing Wire article by Kelsey Ramírez, highlights the details of this report.
“The index in the West last month was the highest in over three years largely because of stronger labor market conditions,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said.
“If homebuilding increases in the region to tame price growth and alleviate the ongoing affordability concerns, the healthy rate of job gains should support more sales,” Yun said.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 1.3% to 111.3 in July, representing the second highest point this year. It is up from a downwardly revised 109.9 in June, and up 1.4% from last year’s 109.8.
An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, the first year to be analyzed. Coincidentally, 2001 was the first of four consecutive record years for existing-home sales.
“Amidst tight inventory conditions that have lingered the entire summer, contract activity last month was able to pick up at least modestly in a majority of areas,” Yun said. “More home shoppers having success is good news for the housing market heading into the fall, but buyers still have few choices and little time before deciding to make an offer on a home available for sale.”
“There’s little doubt there’d be more sales activity right now if there were more affordable listings on the market,” he said.
Residential construction data shows that the size and costs of new homes moved downward over the past year, the report said. This is an early indication that homebuilders are beginning to shift away from building larger, more expensive homes in order to focus on properties in the middle and lower price ranges.
[Read the full article: Pending home sales hit second highest point in a decade]
