Pending home sales in the U.S. grew for another month, a sign that chilly weather hasn't kept buyers from attending open houses and signing sale contracts.
The index used by the National Association of Realtors, or NAR, to measure pending home sales climbed to 2.2% to a reading of 79 in November, up from a 2% gain in October. The index measures Americans under contract to purchase an existing single-family house or a condominium.
November marked the fourth straight month of pending sales gains, according to NAR data. Nationwide, pending home sales are rebounding after dropping to as low as an index reading of 70.2 in July.
Pending sales have grown 6.9% compared to this same time last year, the NAR said.
Buyer interest has been headed in a positive direction in recent months, economists have said, as mortgage rates moderated and more homes came on the market.
“Consumers appeared to have recalibrated expectations regarding mortgage rates and are taking advantage of more available inventory,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “Mortgage rates have averaged above 6% for the past 24 months. Buyers are no longer waiting for or expecting mortgage rates to fall substantially.
"Furthermore, buyers are in a better position to negotiate as the market shifts away from a seller’s market.”
South leads nation
Regionally, the South led the nation in pending home sales growth in November with a 5.2% increase, followed by the West at 0.5% and the Midwest at 0.4%. The Northeast's index fell by 1.3%. Yun said there are regional differences because "some markets will outperform, driven primarily by local job gains and the flow of new inventory supply.”
The data released by NAR on Monday bodes well for the 2025 homebuying season. Contracts to buy houses are considered a good way to predict what actual sales might look like in one to two months because it typically takes that long for a contract to lead to the actual purchase.
In a separate report, NAR said existing home sales have grown for two straight months despite elevated mortgage rates.
Housing analysts predict 2025 will feature stabilized mortgage rates and a slight uptick in homes available for sale.
By most metrics, the 2024 homebuying season was underwhelming, partly because would-be buyers were turned off by mortgage rates ranging between 6.08% and 7.22% on a 30-year loan.
As a result, some homeowners, meanwhile, decided to stay put this year, in fear of selling their property and having to finance a new home at today's higher interest rates. Economists have said that other factors curbing buying activity this year include a short supply of starter homes and the median home sales price climbing past $400,000.