News about home sales

US pending home sales fell 7.3% month-over-month in September, worse than the expected 3.9% decline and reversing August's 0.3% gain, pushing the index to a record low. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun blamed fast-rising mortgage rates, with the 30-year fixed rate at 7.40% per Freddie Mac for the week of October 11, up 113bps year over year. Contract signings fell in every region, most sharply in the West (-9.2% monthly), while the Northeast fell 4.2% monthly but posted the country's largest annual price gain, with its median existing-home price up 5% to $523,600. Yun thinks mortgage rates could be topping out, but uncertain energy prices add inflation risk, and Goldman Sachs expects near-term housing activity to stay under pressure.