The number of home purchase contracts signed by consumers rose to its highest level in 19 months in November, according to the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

The Pending Home Sales Index increased 7.3% in November and is 5.9% above November 2010. The last time pending home sales were this high was April 2010, when buyers were rushing to beat the deadline for the home buyer tax credit.

The gains may result partially from earlier sales that consumers weren’t able to complete, said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Housing affordability conditions are at a record high and there is a pent-up demand from buyers who’ve been on the sidelines, but contract failures have been running unusually high. Some of the increase in pending home sales appears to be from buyers recommitting after an initial contract ran into problems, often with the mortgage,” he said.

Despite the challenges home buyers face in getting deals to the closing table, the rising number of sales contracts should lead to a higher number of closed sales in the months ahead, he added.

Regional pending home sales

Home purchase contract signings were up in all regions of the country in November:

  • in the Northeast, the index rose 8.1%
  • in the Midwest, the index increased 3.3%
  • in the South, the index climbed 4.3%
  • in the West, the index surged 14.9%

Source: NAR