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Subprime problems to depress existing-home sales: Realtors
U.S. pending home sales down 8.5% vs. year-ago
U.S. pending home sales rise 0.7% in February

ECONOMIC REPORT: U.S. pending home sales up 0.7% in February; Realtors' economist says subprime problems to hit existing-home sales
By Robert Schroeder, MarketWatch Last Update: 10:27 AM ET Apr 3, 2007

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Pending sales of U.S. homes rose by 0.7% in February, although the gain may have been held in check by bad weather during the month and possible negative impacts from the shakeout in the subprime lending market, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday.
The index is down 8.5% in the past year.
"If it wasn't for the unusually bad weather in February, we'd be seeing a better performance in pending home sales," said NAR chief economist David Lereah. "We also may be seeing some fallout from a decline in subprime lending."
Problems in that market will "modestly" depress improvement in existing-home sales this year, he said. But he said that the improvement in the month-to-month index is "encouraging" and suggests an "underlying stabilization is taking place in the housing market."
A home sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction hasn't closed. The sale is usually finalized within one or two months of signing.
Pending homes sales rose in the South and Midwest but fell in the Northeast and the West, the Realtors said. Sales rose by 4.5% in the South and by 2.9% in the Midwest. In the Northeast, sales dipped by 1.3%. In the West, pending sales fell by 6.0%.