U.S. Pending Home Sales Unexpectedly Surge To 11-Month High In October

(RTTNews) - The National Association of Realtors released a report on Tuesday showing an unexpected jump by pending home sales in the U.S. in the month of October.

October said its pending home sales index shot up by 1.9 percent to 76.3 in October after inching up by 0.1 percent to an upwardly revised 74.9 in September.

Economists had expected pending home sales to decrease by 0.4 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.

A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.

With the unexpected increase, the pending home sales index reached its highest level since hitting 77.2 in November 2024.

The surge by pending home sales partly reflected strength in the Midwest, where pending home sales spiked by 5.3 percent.

Pending home sales in the Northeast and South also jumped by 2.3 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively, while pending home sales in the West slumped by 1.5 percent.

"The Midwest shined above other regions due to better affordability, while contract signings retreated in the more expensive West region," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.

He added, "Days on the market typically lengthen from November through February, providing better negotiating power to buyers during the holiday season."

NAR said October's REALTORS Confidence Index survey shows that 17 percent of NAR members expect an increase in buyer traffic over the next three months, down from 20 percent September and 19 percent a year ago.

Meanwhile, 16 percent expect an increase in seller traffic, down from 19 percent in September and 19 percent in October 2024, NAR said.

NAR released a separate report last Thursday showing existing home sales in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in October, partly reflecting strength in the Midwest.

The report said existing home sales shot up by 1.2 percent to an annual rate of 4.10 million in October after jumping by 1.3 percent to a downwardly revised rate of 4.05 million in September.

Economists had expected existing home sales to climb by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.08 million from the 4.06 million originally reported for the previous month.