The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) reported today that national pending sales (newly signed contracts) for existing homes reached a 7-month high in February 2016, up 3.5% SAAR compared to January 2016, and up 0.7% SAAR compared to February 2015. This is great news for the spring market as pending sales are a leading indicator of closing activity over the next 60-90 days.
This was reassuring after last week’s report that national existing home sales were down month-over-month, although year-over-year was up. NAR now seems to think the dip was a one-month anomaly, due primarily to bad weather across much of the country. Further, they do not think those closed sales figures were an indicator of how the 2016 spring market will play out, especially after today’s pending sales figures.
“Here at home, we did not experience a dip in closed sales in February, and pending sales activity was strong, well out-pacing national trends,” said Carey Farmer, 2016 Boise Regional REALTORS® President and Associate Broker for Group One Sotheby’s International Realty.
Pending sales for existing homes in Ada County were up 22.8% SAAR compared to January 2016, and up 6.5% SAAR compared to February 2015. In Canyon County, pending sales of existing homes were up 31.5% SAAR compared to January 2016, and up 12.3% SAAR compared to February 2015.
Visit boirealtors.com/category/market-statistics for more local insights from February 2016. Consumers looking to get real-time data specific to their situation are encouraged to contact a REALTOR® today.
NOTE: The figures in the NAR report include a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), not actual counts or averages, and highlight month-to-month figures. Also, these figures do not include new construction properties. At Boise Regional REALTORS® (BRR), we typically report actual counts or averages and year-over-year trends. Seasonally adjusted figures and month-to-month comparisons are helpful in gauging the pace of the market as it moves through the usual, annual cycle. In order to draw comparisons to NAR’s report, local numbers have been seasonally adjusted and will therefore differ from those that were reported in our most recent local market report. However, the overall trends remain the same.
