The numbers: The index of pending house gross sales fell 2.8% in January after 4 consecutive months of declines, the Nationwide Affiliation of Realtors stated Thursday. The index captures real-estate transactions the place a contract was signed however the sale has not but closed, making it an indicator of the place existing-home gross sales will go within the months forward.
The median forecast of economists polled by MarketWatch had known as for a 0.5% decline in pending gross sales on a month-to-month foundation.
“Pending house gross sales fell in January as a result of there are merely not sufficient houses to match the demand available on the market,” Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the Nationwide Affiliation of Realtors, stated within the report. “That stated, there was a rise in permits and requests to construct new houses.”
In comparison with 2019, pending gross sales have been up 13%, indicating that