US pending home sales fell sharply by 9.3% month over month in December 2025, the biggest drop since April 2020, reversing a 3.3% increase in November and far exceeding market expectations for a modest 0.3% decline. The decline ended a four-month streak of gains and marked the steepest drop since April 2020, when the pandemic first hit demand, underscoring that the US housing market remains under pressure. Declines were recorded across all four regions, led by the Midwest (-14.9%) and the West (-13.3%), followed by the Northeast (-11.0%) and the South (-4.0%). On a year-over-year basis, pending home sales were down 3.0%. Commenting on the data, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said that although home closings rose in December, new listings did not keep up, pushing inventory lower. With fewer homes available, buyers were less willing to commit, likely contributing to the drop in pending home sales. source: National Association of Realtors

Pending Home Sales MoM in the United States decreased to -9.30 percent in December from 3.30 percent in November of 2025. Pending Home Sales MoM in the United States averaged -0.01 percent from 2001 until 2025, reaching an all time high of 40.50 percent in May of 2020 and a record low of -30.30 percent in May of 2010. This page includes a chart with historical data for the United States Pending Home Sales MoM. United States Pending Home Sales MoM - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on February of 2026.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2025-12-29 03:00 PM
Pending Home Sales MoM
Nov 3.3% 2.4% 1% 0.7%
2026-01-21 03:00 PM
Pending Home Sales MoM
Dec -9.3% 3.3% -0.3% 1.4%
2026-02-19 03:00 PM
Pending Home Sales MoM
Jan -9.3% 2.6% 6.5%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Existing Home Sales 3910.00 4270.00 Thousand Jan 2026
Existing Home Sales MoM -8.40 4.40 percent Jan 2026
Pending Home Sales YoY -3.00 2.60 percent Dec 2025
Pending Home Sales MoM -9.30 3.30 percent Dec 2025
Existing Home Sales Prices 396800.00 405100.00 USD Jan 2026
Total Housing Inventory 1220.00 1230.00 Thousands Jan 2026


United States Pending Home Sales MoM
The Pending Home Sales Index, a leading indicator of housing activity, measures housing contract activity, and is based on signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops. When a seller accepts a sales contract on a property, it is recorded into a Multiple Listing Service (MLS) as a "pending home sale." The majority of pending home sales become home sale transactions, typically one to two months later. The National Association of Realtors collects pending home sales data from MLSs and large brokers. Altogether, data from over 100 MLSs & 60 large brokers is received providing a large sample size covering 50% of the existing home sales sample. This is equal to 20 percent of all transactions.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
-9.30 3.30 40.50 -30.30 2001 - 2025 percent Monthly
SA

News Stream
US Pending Home Sales Plunge in December
US pending home sales fell sharply by 9.3% month over month in December 2025, the biggest drop since April 2020, reversing a 3.3% increase in November and far exceeding market expectations for a modest 0.3% decline. The decline ended a four-month streak of gains and marked the steepest drop since April 2020, when the pandemic first hit demand, underscoring that the US housing market remains under pressure. Declines were recorded across all four regions, led by the Midwest (-14.9%) and the West (-13.3%), followed by the Northeast (-11.0%) and the South (-4.0%). On a year-over-year basis, pending home sales were down 3.0%. Commenting on the data, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said that although home closings rose in December, new listings did not keep up, pushing inventory lower. With fewer homes available, buyers were less willing to commit, likely contributing to the drop in pending home sales.
2026-01-21
US Pending Home Rise More than Expected
US pending home sales rose by 3.3% from the previous month in November of 2025, picking up from the upwardly revised 2.4% increase from October and ahead of expectations of a 1% gain, to reflect a fourth consecutive increase in pending home sales. Growth was consistent in all areas of the country, including the West (9.2%), the South (2.4%), the Northeast (1.8%), and the Midwest (1.3%). "Homebuyer momentum is building. The data shows the strongest performance of the year after accounting for seasonal factors, and the best performance in nearly three years, dating back to February 2023," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "Improving housing affordability–driven by lower mortgage rates and wage growth rising faster than home prices–is helping buyers test the market. More inventory choices compared to last year are also attracting more buyers to the market."
2025-12-29
US Pending Home Rise More than Expected
US pending home sales rose by 1.9% from the previous month in October of 2025, gaining traction from the revised 0.1% increase in the previous month and well above the preliminary estimate of a 0.5% gain. The increase was consistent in all areas of the country, including the Midwest (5.3%), Northeast (2.3%), South (1.4%), and West (1.5%). "The Midwest shined above other regions due to better affordability, while contract signings retreated in the more expensive West region," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "Days on the market typically lengthen from November through February, providing better negotiating power to buyers during the holiday season. Job gains in September, following the data blackout, are reassuring and suggest the economy is not slipping into a recession. This may boost confidence in future homebuying."
2025-11-25