By by Calculated Risk on 3/25/2022 10:09:00 AM
From CNBC: Pending home sales sink in February, setting a grim tone as housing market enters key spring season
Sales were down 5.4% compared with February 2021. Analysts were expecting a slight gain. This is the fourth straight month of declines in pending sales, which are an indicator of future closings, one to two months out.
…
Regionally, pending sales rose 1.9% month-to-month in the Northeast but were down 9.2% from a year ago. In the Midwest, sales decreased 6.0% for the month and were down 5.2% from February 2021. In the South, sales fell 4.4% monthly and 4.3% annually, and in the West they were down 5.4% for the month and 5.3% from a year ago.
emphasis added
This was well below expectations of a 1.5% 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 March and April.
