The National
Association of Realtors (NAR) informed on Thursday its seasonally adjusted
pending home sales index (PHSI) dropped by 2.1 per cent m-o-m to 70.8 in May, following an unrevised 7.7
per cent m-o-m plunge in April.
Economists had forecast
pending home sales to rise 2.5 per cent m-o-m in May.
On a y-o-y basis,
the index plummeted 6.6 per cent after an unrevised 7.4 per cent tumble in April.
According to
the report, pending home sales operations declined in South (-5.5 per cent
m-o-m) and Midwest (-0.4 per cent m-o-m) but increased in the West (+1.4 per
cent m-o-m) and Northeast (+1.1 per cent m-o-m). Compared
to May 2024, all four U.S. regions also posted decreases, led by the South (-10.4
per cent y-o-y).
Commenting on
the latest report, Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, noted that the U.S. housing
market is at an interesting point with rising inventory and lower demand. “Supply
and demand movements suggest easing home price appreciation in upcoming months,”
he added. “Inevitably, more inventory in a job-creating economy will lead to
greater home buying, especially when mortgage rates descend.”