Pending Home Sales Fall in November

Washington, DC, January 8, 2008--Sales contracts on existing homes dropped 2.6 percent in November, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The pending home sales index, based on contracts signed but not closed in November, was down 19.2 percent in the past year.

The index, a leading indicator of existing home sales, had risen in September and October. Sales of existing homes have dropped 20 percent in the past year

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said there is a pull and tug exerting itself on the market. “On the one hand, we have a pent-up demand from the four million jobs added to our economy over the past two years of sales decline,” he said. “On the other, consumers continue to wait for additional signs of market stabilization. There are more people with financial capacity now than in 2005, but many are trying to market-time their purchase. As a result, the exact timing and the strength of a home sales recovery is a bit uncertain. A meaningful recovery in existing-home sales could occur as early as this spring, or it may be further delayed toward late 2008.”