Sales of houses pending in the United States slipped to a historic hollow in January as high mortgage rate,, high -level house pricesAnd perhaps the terrible time last month bothered those who were looking to buy.
The National Association of Real Estate Agents said Thursday that its pending house sale index, which is an indicator of sales of houses based on contract signatures, decreased 4.6% to 70.6 last month. Pending transactions dropped 5.2% compared to the period of the previous year.
There have been monthly decreases in the Midwest, in the south and west, with the most important drop in the south. Despite the stretches of strong winds and low temperatures, sales in the northeast have increased slightly.
“It is not clear if the coldest January in 25 years contributed to fewer buyers on the market, and in the case, expect a greater sales activity in the coming months,” said the chief economist Lawrence Yun, in a statement. “However, it is obvious that the high prices of houses and higher mortgage rates have set out to affordability.”
Mortgage rates in January were between 6.91% and 7.04%.
On Friday, NAR said that sales of American houses previously occupied slippery 4.9% last month of December at an annual rate seasonally adjusted by 4.08 million units.
Sales increased by 2% compared to January of last year, marking the fourth consecutive annual increase. According to FactstSet, the last sales of houses failed the 4.11 million rhythms that economists expected.
The prices of houses have increased on an annual basis for the 19th consecutive month. The national median selling price increased by 4.8% in January of the previous year to $ 396,900.
The US housing market was in a sales crisis dating from 2022, when mortgage rates began to set up hollows in the pandemic era. Sales of previously occupied American houses dropped last year lowest level in almost 30 years.
The shares of the manufacturers of listed houses were punished this year and these prices once again slipped on Thursday. The prices threatened by President Donald Trump led to an increase in discomfort in the sector due to the possibility of higher price for wood and metals. And mass deportations under the Trump administration could also increase costs for manufacturers.
The manufacturer Toll Brothers is down 11% this year. Dr. Horton and Lennar are down between 7% and 9%. Beazer Homes is down by almost 17% in 2025.
