August 6, 2007

Pending Home Sales UP in the South

Pending home sales in June increased from the previous month in all four major regions, according to the National Association of REALTORS' (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI).

The 5 percent monthly gain is the largest since March 2004's
6.1 percent increase.
* The PHSI in the West increased 8.6 percent to 103.6 but was
5.5 percent below June 2006.
* The PHSI in the Northeast increased 3.1 percent to 96.0 but is 2.4 percent below June 2006.
* The PHSI in the South increased 4.7 percent to 111.6 but was
12.7 percent below June 2006.
* The PHSI in the Midwest increased 3.5 percent to 92.5 but was 8.2 percent below June 2006.

"However, it is too early to say if home sales have already passed bottom," said Lawrence Yun, NAR senior economist. "Still, major declines in home sales are likely to have occurred already, and further declines, if any, are likely to be modest given the accumulating pent-up demand."

[SOURCES: NAR; Texas Real Estate Research Center]

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