Pending home sales declined 1.9% in June to a level of 112.8 on the National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index. An index of 100 is equal to the level of contract activity in 2001, according to NAR. Compared with June 2020, pending home sales are also down 1.9%.
“Pending sales have seesawed since January, indicating a turning point for the market,” stated Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Buyers are still interested and want to own a home, but record-high home prices are causing some to retreat.”
Regionally, pending home sales increased 0.5% in the Northeast and 0.6% in the Midwest. Pending home sales in the South and West declined 3.0% and 3.8%, respectively. Compared with June 2020, the Northeast was the only region to record growth in contract signings, reporting an 8.7% increase.
“In just the last year, increasing home prices have translated into a substantial wealth gain of $45,000 for a typical homeowner,” Yun added. “These gains are expected to moderate to around $10,000 to $20,000 over the next year.” Yun forecasted that mortgage rates will begin inching upward toward the end of 2021.
The full NAR report can be found here.