Overview
- January’s NAR Pending Home Sales Index fell 0.8% from December and 0.4% year over year to 70.9, the lowest level in data back to 2001.
- Redfin reports pending sales down about 5.8% year over year in the four weeks ending Feb. 15, with the typical home taking 67 days to go under contract, the longest stretch since early 2019.
- Mortgage rates hovered near the low‑6% range, and NAR estimates roughly 5.5 million additional households now qualify for a mortgage, yet buyer activity remains subdued.
- Regional trends were mixed: month over month, contracts fell in the Northeast and South but rose in the Midwest and West; year over year, the South and West posted gains as the Northeast and Midwest declined.
- Supply signals are constrained as 2025 single‑family starts fell about 7% and December new‑home inventory declined to 472,000 units (7.6 months of supply), with builders citing labor and regulatory costs and policymakers advancing a House bill aimed at boosting construction.