Housing Rebound Hurt by Contract Cancellations

Washington, DC, Sept. 20, 2012 -- The housing market may have turned but there’s an obstacle that appears to be slowing down the turnaround: the unusually high number of buyers who walk away from their contracts, according to a story at Marketwatch.

The website reported that an average of nearly 18% of signed contracts on existing home sales were cancelled during the three months ending July, citing data by research firm Capital Economics.

That’s the most since May 2010, when that figure reached 23%.

In addition, Marketwatch said that 36% of Realtors are reporting some kind of problem with a contract, including cancellations, delays and renegotiations of the sales terms. That’s up from 30% earlier this year.


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