Pending home sales show healthy gain, hint at spring surge
Pending home sales rose in February, potentially signalling a second surge
of home sales, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).
The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), a forward-looking indicator based on
contracts signed in February, rose 8.2 percent to 97.6 from a downwardly
revised 90.2 in January. The Index is 17.3 percent above February 2009 when
it was 83.2. The data reflects contracts and not closings, which usually
occur with a lag time of one or two months.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says the improvement is another hopeful
sign. “The rise in buyer contact activity may signal the early stages of a
second surge of home sales this spring. The healthy gain hints home prices
are continuing to flatten,” he says. “We need a second surge to meaningfully
draw down inventory and definitively stabilize home values.”
Pending home sales in the South increased 9.2 percent to an index of 107.0,
and the index is 17.5 percent higher than February 2009.
“Anecdotally, we’re hearing about a rise of activity in recent weeks with
ongoing reports of multiple offers in more markets, so the March data could
demonstrate additional improvement from buyers,” Yun says.
Posted: 5 April 2010
Source: Florida Association of Realtors
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