Financial News: U.S. Pending Home Sales Plunge Far More Than

U.S. Pending Home Sales Plunge Far More Than Expected In June

07/16/2026 - 10:54:00 (RTTNews)

(RTTNews) - Pending home sales in the U.S. pulled back by much more than expected in the month of June, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday.

NAR said its pending home sales index plunged by 5.4 percent to 72.5 in June after surging by 3.5 percent to a revised 76.6 in May.

Economists had expected pending home sales to decrease by 0.5 percent compared to the 3.8 percent spike originally reported for the previous month.

A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.

With the much bigger than expected decrease, the pending home sales index tumbled to its lowest level since hitting 70.8 in January.

"The highest mortgage rates in nearly a year and the record-high national median home price together are contributing to a tepid housing market that is especially difficult for first-time homebuyers," said NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun. "However, job gains can help support housing demand."

"It is worth emphasizing that it is closing activity, not contract signings, that generates economic impact," he added. "Pending contracts are only suggestive of upcoming closed deals and do not align perfectly, due to fallout rates and contract contingencies."

The sharp pullback by pending home sales partly reflected weakness in the Midwest, where pending home sales plummeted by 8.9 percent.

Pending home sales in the West and South also plunged by 4.7 percent and 4.1 percent, respectively, while pending home sales in the Northeast tumbled by 3.0 percent.

On Friday, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release a separate report on new residential construction in the month of June.

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