by Calculated Risk on 8/31/2017 10:03:00 AM

From the NAR: Pending Home Sales Lessen 0.8 Percent in July

Pending homes sales stumbled in July for the fourth time in five months as only the West saw an increase in contract activity, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, decreased 0.8 percent to 109.1 in July from a downwardly revised 110.0 in June. After last month’s decline, the index is now 1.3 percent below a year ago and has fallen on an annual basis in three of the past four months.
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The PHSI in the Northeast inched backward 0.3 percent to 97.7 in July, but is still 2.4 percent above a year ago. In the Midwest the index decreased 0.7 percent to 103.3 in July, and is now 2.8 percent lower than July 2016.

Pending home sales in the South declined 1.7 percent to an index of 123.1 in July and are now 0.2 percent below last July. The index in the West expanded 0.6 percent in July to 102.3, but is still 4.0 percent below a year ago.
emphasis added

This was below expectations of a 0.8% increase for this index. Note: Contract signings usually lead sales by about 45 to 60 days, so this would usually be for closed sales in August and September.