Global| Feb 27 2012U.S. Pending Home Sales Recover Earlier Decline
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that January pending sales of single-family homes improved 2.0% (8.0% y/y) following a lessened 1.9% December drop. The index level of 97.0 (2001=100) was the highest since April of [...]
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that January pending sales of single-family homes improved 2.0% (8.0% y/y) following a lessened 1.9% December drop. The index level of 97.0 (2001=100) was the highest since April of 2010 when the first-time homebuyers tax credit was fueling sales.
Sales improvement last month was uneven throughout the country. In the Northeast, a 7.6% m/m sales gain pulled the level up for the fourth consecutive month, also to its highest since April 2010. In the South, a 7.7% gain also was to its highest since April 2010. To the downside, sales in the West fell 4.4% to their lowest since April of last year while sales in the Midwest were off 3.8% but still were at their highest also since April 2010.
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) | Jan | Dec | Nov | Y/Y % | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 97.0 | 95.1 | 96.9 | 8.0 | 90.3 | 89.2 | 94.7 |
| Northeast | 78.2 | 72.7 | 72.3 | 9.8 | 68.0 | 70.9 | 76.8 |
| Midwest | 88.1 | 91.6 | 90.1 | 10.8 | 81.6 | 79.9 | 88.9 |
| South | 109.1 | 101.3 | 102.9 | 10.5 | 98.3 | 97.0 | 98.4 |
| West | 101.9 | 106.6 | 113.7 | 0.7 | 104.2 | 100.8 | 109.2 |
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.
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