Pending Home Sales index update

Regionally, the Northeast, South and West segments of the market were all higher month-over-month, while the Midwest took a step back. The West experienced the most significant jump, gaining 7.3% from June. The NAR cited improved labor conditions as the primary driver of the increase.

The index is an indicator of housing activity and is based on signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops. The index will lead most other home sales data as it typically takes up to eight weeks for home sales to become final.