Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Pending Home Sales Reached a 21-Month High in September
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
October 29, 2019

Share

WASHINGTON — More Americans signed contracts to buy homes in September, a sign that the housing market is still benefiting from lower mortgage rates.
The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday that its pending home sales index rose 1.5% from August to September to 108.7, its highest level since December 2017. Measured year over year, pending home sales have surged 3.9%.

“It looks like the drop in mortgage rates relative to late last year has helped boost activity in the housing market.” — Daniel Silver, an economist at JPMorgan Chase Bank
Home buying has grown more affordable thanks to steadily dropping mortgage rates. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.75, according to Freddie Mac. That’s down nearly a full percentage point from November 2018.
“It looks like the drop in mortgage rates relative to late last year has helped boost activity in the housing market,” Daniel Silver, an economist at JPMorgan Chase Bank, said in a research note.

This Month’s Pending Sales Ticked up in the Midwest and the South

Still, rising home prices, boosted by a persistent shortage of properties on the market, have limited potential sales growth. Until recently, the gap between home prices and average wage gains had been narrowing. Separate Case-Shiller home price figures released Tuesday showed that home values rose just 2% for the 12 months that ended in August, below the annual wage growth of nearly 3%.
But the NAR says there are signs that lower mortgage rates are now starting to cause prices to accelerate.
This month’s pending sales ticked up in the Midwest and the South but slipped in the pricier Northeast and West.
Pending sales are a measure of home purchases that are usually completed a month or two later.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Hawaiian Airlines Hit by Cyber Attack

DON'T MISS

US House Committee Subpoenas Harvard Over Tuition Costs

DON'T MISS

Convicted Felon Caught With Guns, Ammunition in Fresno Bust

DON'T MISS

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

DON'T MISS

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

DON'T MISS

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

DON'T MISS

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Searching for At-Risk Missing Man Last Seen in Fresno

DON'T MISS

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

DON'T MISS

Wonderdog Still Barking: Justin Wilson Thrives With Boston Red Sox

UP NEXT

Tesla Executive, Elon Musk Confidant Leaves EV Maker, Bloomberg News Reports

UP NEXT

How a Birthday Boat Ride on Lake Tahoe Turned Tragic

UP NEXT

Cuomo Concedes to Mamdani in New York City Democratic Mayoral Contest

UP NEXT

Mamdani Holds Lead Over Cuomo in Democratic Primary for NYC Mayor

UP NEXT

Clovis Man Sentenced to 8 Years in Federal Prison in Deadly Fentanyl Case

UP NEXT

Victims Identified as Death Toll Climbs to 8 in Lake Tahoe Boating Tragedy

UP NEXT

Florida to Build ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detention Center for Migrants in Everglades

UP NEXT

Americans Worry Conflict With Iran Could Escalate, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

UP NEXT

Advisory Warns of ‘Heightened Threat Environment’ in US After Iran Strikes

UP NEXT

Amazon’s Prime Day 2025 Levels Up With Four Days of Deals Starting July 8

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

2 hours ago

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

3 hours ago

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

4 hours ago

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

4 hours ago

Clovis Police Searching for At-Risk Missing Man Last Seen in Fresno

4 hours ago

State Department Approves $30 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

4 hours ago

Wonderdog Still Barking: Justin Wilson Thrives With Boston Red Sox

5 hours ago

Anna Wintour to Step Down From Vogue Editor-in-Chief Role, Media Reports Say

5 hours ago

Feds Charge Bullard High Teacher With Child Porn, Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

6 hours ago

New Data Clarifies a Lingering Question on 2024 Turnout

6 hours ago

Hawaiian Airlines Hit by Cyber Attack

WASHINGTON – Hawaiian Airlines said on Thursday that some of its IT systems were disrupted by a hack, adding its flights were operatin...

1 hour ago

Hawaiian Airlines airplanes on the runway at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. April 28, 2020.
1 hour ago

Hawaiian Airlines Hit by Cyber Attack

A view of Harvard campus on John F. Kennedy Street at Harvard University is pictured in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., December 7, 2023. (Reuters File)
2 hours ago

US House Committee Subpoenas Harvard Over Tuition Costs

A convicted felon was arrested in Fresno County after investigators found a rifle, handgun, and ammunition while serving a search warrant. (Fresno PD)
2 hours ago

Convicted Felon Caught With Guns, Ammunition in Fresno Bust

2 hours ago

Fresno Advocates Want Respect for Immigrants, Defend Miguel Arias

American_Flag_Bitcoin_1280x720
3 hours ago

Crypto Industry Moves Into US Housing Market

Journalist Bill Moyers delivers the keynote speech at the People for the American Way Foundation's Spirit of Liberty dinner in Beverly Hills September 21, 2004. (Reuters File)
4 hours ago

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

President Donald Trump speaks during a "One Big Beautiful" event at the White House in Washington, DC., U.S., June 26, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
4 hours ago

Trump Says a Deal Related to Trade Was Signed With China on Wednesday

Clovis police are searching for Surinder Pal, 55, an at-risk man last seen in Fresno, after his car was found abandoned. (Clovis PD)
4 hours ago

Clovis Police Searching for At-Risk Missing Man Last Seen in Fresno

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend