EHS

4.89 million

Existing-home Sales

Seasonally adjusted annual rate, which is the actual rate of sales for the month, multiplied by 12 and adjusted for seasonal sales differences.

PHSI

88.2

Pending Home Sales Index The Pending Home Sales Index measures housing contract activity. An index of 100 is equal to the level of activity during 2001, the benchmark year.

Source: NAR Research

Sales Poised for Gains

Existing single-family home sales were down 1 percent in April, but NAR’s forward-looking indicator suggests sales are ready to head up. The sales pace was 4.89 million units, down from an upwardly revised 4.94 million* in March. The pending home sales index, though, jumped by more than five percentage points, to 88.2 from 83.0 in March.

*Adjusted from the figure published in the June 2008 issue.

Outlook Turns Rosy

After months of mixed views on the direction of housing markets, practitioners are turning optimistic. Confidence in buyer traffic is up and practitioners think business over the next six months will be improved over today’s levels.  Practitioner confidence was surveyed in May.

Results are based on 775 responses to 3,000 surveys sent to large and small real estate offices. The survey asks practitioners to indicate whether conditions are strong (100 points), moderate (50), or weak (0). Responses are averaged to derive results.