The National Association of Realtors Pending Homes Sales Index dropped 7.7 percent year-over-year in November, marking the 11th straight month of annual decreases. The forward-looking indicator, which is based on contract signings, also decreased by 0.7 percent from October to November.

Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR), sought to tamp down long-term concerns in a prepared statement, despite pending contracts plunging to their lowest level since 2014.

“The latest decline in contract signings implies more short-term pullback in the housing sector and does not yet capture the impact of recent favorable conditions of mortgage rates,” Yun said in a statement issued Friday.

All four regions NAR tracks – the Northeast, South, Midwest and West – experienced year-over-year declines, with the western United States shouldering the biggest drop in pending home sales, likely due to affordability challenges.

“Land cost is expensive and zoning regulations are too stringent,” Yun said. “Therefore, local officials should consider ways to boost local supply; if not, they risk seeing population migrating to neighboring states and away from the West Coast.”

Looking ahead, Yun believes things will turn around. A potential rise in inventory is around the corner, judging by an increase in active listings on realtor.com, Yun said.

“Home sales in 2018 look to close out the year with 5.3 million home sales, which would be similar to that experienced in the year 2000,” Yun said. “But given the 17 million more jobs now compared to the turn of the century, the home sales are clearly underperforming today. That also means there is steady longer-term growth potential.”

Email Patrick Kearns

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
Only 3 days left to register for Inman Connect Las Vegas before prices go up! Don't miss the premier event for real estate pros.Register Now ×
Limited Time Offer: Get 1 year of Inman Select for $199SUBSCRIBE×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×