Pending U.S. Home Sales Decline 1.2% as Lower Prices Fail to Stoke Demand

[xchrom]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-29/pending-u-s-home-sales-decline-1-2-as-lower-prices-fail-to-stoke-demand.html

The number of contracts to purchase previously owned U.S. homes fell in August, a sign that lower prices and borrowing costs are doing little to stoke demand.

The 1.2 percent decrease in the index of pending home sales followed a 1.3 percent drop the previous month, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington. Economists forecast a 2 percent drop, according to the median of 43 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.

Unemployment at 9.1 percent and the acceleration of foreclosure processing indicate it may take years to clear the oversupply of houses, an obstacle for stabilizing the market. The prospect of contract cancellations due to stricter underwriting standards and low appraisals means some signings may not translate into closings.

“With the job market also foundering, there is every reason to think more buyers opted for the sidelines,” Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania, said before the report. “The fundamentals also point to a difficult month for sales, even though mortgage rates have come down appreciably.”

[dipsydoodle]

1. Big switchover to renting

according to Bloomberg News a few days back and likely to last a few years.

[Rockholm]

2. Not in our local market.

Real estate is local. Love how the media takes a local issue and paints it with the national brush.

[louis-t]

5. THANK YOU. Our market is doing pretty good right now.

Prices are stabilizing, going up in some areas, inventory is down a little.

[canoeist52]

3. If you think you could lose your job or are unemployed, would YOU buy a house?

[ProdigalJunkMail]

4. with little to no personal savings

most people cannot come up with down payments any more. no wonder prices/sales are plummeting.

sP