Purchase contract signings reach best-ever level in July
By Carl Horst, Ohio REALTORS Director of Publications/Media Relations
Ohio REALTORS reports the number of single-family homes and condominiums put under agreement in July 2017 reached a best-ever level for the month, increasing 0.4 percent from the level posted during the month a year ago.
Ohio's July Pending Home Sales Index of 153.5, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 0.4 percent from July 2016 (152.9). Activity in July fell 6 percent from the pace of agreements reached in June 2017 (163.2).
"The Ohio housing marketplace is continuing to exhibit tremendous resiliency, as the number of homes put under contract in July reached an all-time high for the month," said Ohio REALTORS President Pete Kopf. "While the market continues to face the ongoing challenge of tight inventory levels, the brisk pace of contract signings is positive indication that the confidence level among home buyers remains positive."
Compared to 2008, a historically healthy market that marked the end of five consecutive record years for existing home sales and the onset of the recession, July's Index score of 153.5 marks a 53.5 increase.
A pending sale or a sale "under agreement" is when the buyer and seller agree on terms of the sale of a home and have a signed purchase and sale agreement, but have yet to close and be recorded as such.
Ohio REALTORS, the largest professional trade association in the state with more than 31,000 members, is the only organization that compiles this state wide information from selected Multiple Listing Services each month. The tracking of "pending sales" provides reliable information about where the market is heading in coming months.
