Homes are seen for sale in the northwest area of Portland, Oregon, in this file photo taken March 20, 2014. (Photo: Reuters)
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) declined in all 4 major regions in April for the second straight month. The PHSI, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, fell 1.3% to 109.8 in April from a downwardly revised 111.3 in March.
Following last month’s decline, the index is now 3.3% below a year ago, which is the first year-over-year decline since last December and the largest since June 2014 when it was 7.1%.
“Much of the country for the second straight month saw a pullback in pending sales as the rate of new listings continues to lag the quicker pace of homes coming off the market,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR said. “Realtors® are indicating that foot traffic is higher than a year ago1, but it’s obviously not translating to more sales.”
The PHSI in the Northeast fell 1.7% to 97.2 in April and is now 0.6% below a year ago. In the Midwest, it fell 4.7% to 104.4 in April and is now 6.1% below levels in April 2016.
In the South, the Pending Home Sales Index decreased 2.7% to an index of 125.9 in April and is 2.3% below last April. The index in the West gained 5.8% in April to 100.0, but is still 4.2% below a year ago.
[brid video=”143386″ player=”2077″ title=”Lawrence Yun on PHSI Falling for Second Straight Month”]
