Overview

• The National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index fell 0.4% in July to 71.7 and was up 0.7% from a year earlier, signaling continued weak activity.
• Regional results were mixed month over month: West +3.7%, South -0.1%, Northeast -0.6%, and Midwest -4.0%, with annual gains in the Midwest and South but declines in the Northeast and West.
• About 15% of signed purchase contracts were canceled in July, the highest rate since Redfin began tracking the metric in 2017, highlighting fragile demand.
• Mortgage rates sat in the mid‑6% range through July and eased modestly in August to near 6.5%, offering limited relief to stretched affordability.
• Inventory and months of supply have risen as price growth cools—Case‑Shiller showed nationwide prices up 1.9% year over year in June—tilting leverage toward buyers in many metros with only a few true seller’s markets remaining.