Pending home sales hit their lowest level since 2001

Pending home sales fell 7.3% in September, pushing the index to 66, the lowest reading in the National Association of Realtors series, which dates to 2001. Sales were also down 11.3% from a year earlier, so the market is losing transactions even as prices keep moving higher.

The West led the decline with a 9.2% drop, followed by an 8.2% fall in the South. Mortgage applications are near 1995 levels, while September home prices still rose 3.8% annually, leaving buyers with more negotiating power but little price relief.