Global| Jan 28 2013U.S. Pending Home Sales Fall Sharply
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Pending sales of single-family homes slumped 4.3% (+6.9% y/y) last month after a little-revised 1.6% November rise, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). For all of 2012, sales rose 11.2% y/y. The rebound in the [...]
Pending sales of single-family homes slumped 4.3% (+6.9% y/y) last month after a little-revised 1.6% November rise, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). For all of 2012, sales rose 11.2% y/y. The rebound in the aftermath of the removal in 2010 of the home buyers tax credit has raised sales by one-third from the low.
The slump in sales last month was led by an 8.2% decline (-5.3% y/y) in sales in the West. Sales in the Northeast also were soft and fell 5.4% (+8.4% y/y), reversing the November gain. Finally, sales in the South were off 4.5% (+10.1% y/y) to the lowest level in three months. To the upside, sales in the Midwest inched higher by 0.9% (14.4% y/y) after a similarly small November rise.
Pending home sales figures are analogous to the new home sales data from the Commerce Department in that they measure existing home sales when the sales contract is signed, not at the time the sale is closed. The series dates back to 2001 and the data are available in Haver's PREALTOR database.
| Pending Home Sales (2001=100) | Dec | Nov | Oct | Y/Y% | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 101.7 | 106.3 | 104.6 | 6.9 | 100.4 | 90.3 | 89.2 |
| Northeast | 78.8 | 83.3 | 79.2 | 8.4 | 79.2 | 68.0 | 70.9 |
| Midwest | 104.8 | 103.9 | 103.7 | 14.4 | 96.1 | 81.6 | 79.9 |
| South | 111.5 | 116.8 | 117.2 | 10.1 | 110.8 | 98.3 | 97.0 |
| West | 101.0 | 110.0 | 105.7 | -5.3 | 105.1 | 104.2 | 100.8 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
