From the Associated Press in Washington comes news of a 13% increase in pending home sales in the South and Midwest.Article Highlights:
- An index that tracks signed contracts to purchase existing homes rebounded in December, as buyers snapped up properties at deep discounts, especially in the South and Midwest.
- It was the second positive sign in the past two weeks for the troubled U.S. housing market, and may indicate that a bottom is forming — at least for home sales.
- The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday its seasonally adjusted index of pending sales for previously owned homes for December rose 6.3 percent to 87.7 from an upwardly revised November reading of 82.5 … The reading also was up 2.1 percent from December 2007 … January sales data, to be released later this month, may look good too.
- Pending home sales increased about 13 percent in the South and Midwest, but fell almost 4 percent in the West and about 2 percent in the Northeast.
