Pending Home Sales Fall

- Pending Home Sales for March fell 1.2% versus estimates of a .5% decline and a .8% fall in February.

BOTTOM LINE: Contracts to purchase previously owned US homes decreased in March to a two-year low as buyers were deterred by rising mortgage rates and selling prices that remain higher than a year ago, Bloomberg said. Last week, the average 30-year mortgage rate rose to 6.58%, almost a four-year high. Pending re-sales fell 7.4% in the Midwest and 1.2% in the South. Pending re-sales rose 5.2% in the Northeast and .7% in the West. I continue to believe housing is in the process of slowing to more healthy sustainable levels, which will likely sending consumer spending back to average levels.