Signed contracts to buy existing homes dropped 2.3 percent in September from August and were just 3 percent higher than one year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index.
August’s read was revised down slightly. Analysts had expected a slight gain for the month. This is the second straight monthly drop and is also the second lowest reading of the year. Pending sales are a forward-looking indicator of closed sales for the next two months.