Pending home sales slip in July, but up double digits year over year

The National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index declined 1.3 percent to 89.7 in July, but is 14.4 percent above the July 2010 index, according to data released this morning.

All regions show monthly declines except for the West, which continues to show the highest level of sales contract activity. Breakdown by region:

• Northeast — declined 2 percent to 67.5 in July but is 9.7 percent above July 2010
• Midwest — slipped 0.8 percent to 79.1 in July but is 18.8 percent above a year ago
• South — fell 4.8 percent to an index of 94.4 but are 9.5 percent higher than July 2010
• West — rose 3.6 percent to 110.8 in July and is 20.6 percent above a year ago.

“Looking at pending home sales over a longer span, contract activity over the past three months is fairly comparable to the first three months of the year, and well above the low seen in April,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “The underlying factors for improving sales are developing, such as rising rents, record high affordability conditions, and investors buying real estate as a future inflation hedge. It is now a question of lending standards and consumers having the necessary confidence to enter the market.”

For more, visit: http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2011/08/phs_july.