US Housing Market Faces Setback as Pending Home Sales Drop in March.

Pending home sales in the US decreased by 5.2% in March, the first decline since November 2022, according to the National Association of Realtors. The lack of housing inventory is a major constraint to rising sales, with limited housing supply not meeting demand nationally. NAR forecasts that the economy will continue adding jobs, albeit at a slower pace, and mortgage rates will drop. Existing-home sales will drop from the prior year by 9.3% in 2023, to 4.56 million, before increasing by 15.4% in 2024, to 5.26 million. Newly constructed home sales will increase from last year by 4.5% in 2023, to 670,000, due to more plentiful inventory in this segment of the market, and increase by another 11.9% in 2024, to 750,000.