Tag Archives: Pending-Home Sales

The U.S. housing market continues to trudge down the slow, bumpy road to recovery with a few positive indicators lighting the way. However, a full recovery continues to linger listlessly on the horizon. Obama's Housing Scorecard for April, released jointly by HUD and the Treasury Department, reveals some positive movement in home sales, though prices continue to languish in many markets. Another piece of good news for the market: Housing inventory is now at a sustainable level. The market currently holds a 5.3-month supply of new homes.

The Pending Home Sales Index rose sharply in March to 101.4 from February's revised 97.4, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. Economists had expected the Index to increase 1.0 percent from February. The index is now at the highest level since April 2010 when it reached 111.3. The index improved for the third straight month and fifth time in the last six month. The March reading is up 12.8 percent from March 2011, the strongest year-over-year gain since last July. The PHSI has been drifting upward, albeit modestly for most of the past two years.

The Pending-Home Sales Index edged down February to 96.5 from January's 97.0 which had been the highest level since April 2010, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday. The index slipped for just the second time in the last five months but was 9.2 percent ahead of the level in February 2011. It remains far below the April 2005 down 26. The index began in January 2005. Pending-home sales are counted when sales contracts are signed, and are viewed as a leading indicator of existing home sales; re-sales should be stronger over the next few months.