Pending home sales in April fell a sharp 7.7% month over month, well more than the anticipated 1% decline. This takes the index to just 0.5 points from the lowest level on record dating back to 2001, notes Peter Boockvar, editor of The Boock Report.
The National Association of Realtors stated the obvious reason: “The impact of escalating interest rates throughout April dampened home buying, even with more inventory in the market.” They should have added: “and escalating interest rates on top of record high home prices that keep on rising.”
Pending Home Sales Index
Bottom line, we have the pace of existing home sales around the slowest since 1995. That also negatively impacts all the ancillary activity that takes place around the transfer of a home from one owner to another, and for the home the seller moves into, and so on and so on.
On the other hand, we know the pace of new home sales is doing better. But even there, the pace is no different than what we saw in 2019.
