After six months of declines, pending home sales rose 2.5% in December to a level of 76.9 on the National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index.
Compared with December 2021, pending home sales were down 33.8% on the index. An index level of 100 is equal to the level of contract activity in 2001.
“This recent low point in home sales activity is likely over,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “Mortgage rates are the dominant factor driving home sales, and recent declines in rates are clearly helping to stabilize the market.”
Regionally, pending home sales fell 6.5% in the Northeast and 0.3% in the Midwest. Pending home sales rose 6.1% in the South and 6.4% in the West. Pending home sales declined in every region year-over-year.
The full NAR report can be found here.
