Pending home sales jumped 7.5% in October to a level of 125.2 on the National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index. Year-over-year, pending home sales declined 1.4%.
The October gain ensures that total existing home sales in 2021 will exceed 6 million—the best performance in 15 years, according to NAR.
“This solid buying is a testament to demand still being relatively high, as it is occurring during a time when inventory is still markedly low,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement.
Regionally, pending home sales increased 6.9% in the Northeast, 11.8% in the Midwest, 8.0% in the South and 2.1% in the West.
An index of 100 is equivalent to the level of contract activity in 2001.
The full NAR report can be found here.
