Pending home sales await a lower rate pick-me-up

Not yet really capturing the timeframe where mortgage rates fell the most (that happened in August), July pending home sales were soft, falling by 5.5% m/o/m vs the estimate of up .2%. This follows a 4.8% rise in June and they are down 4.6% y/o/y.

The NAR said “A sales recovery did not occur in midsummer. The positive impact of job growth and higher inventory could not overcome affordability challenges and some degree of wait-and-see related to the upcoming US presidential election.” I’ll fade the latter excuse as while one side has offered $25k to a prospective home buyer if elected, it has almost zero chance of being passed and even if it did, the price of the home will likely go up by $25k and completely offset it.