by Double-digit decrease from September 2025 could yield fewer home sales in October and November
WASHINGTON — The latest pending home sales report released in late October reveals more softness in the housing market that could be impacting furniture sales.
According to the National Association of Realtors, pending home sales declined 11.3% from September 2025 and declined 7.3% from August. By comparison, existing home sales were only down 2.2% from September 2025 and down 1.5% from August.
Representing the amount of homes under contract, it bodes poorly for home sales in the next 30-60 days that closings are expected to occur, meaning there could be a drop in actual closings for both October and November.
The NAR report said that year-over-year pending home sales declined in all four regions of the U.S. while month-over-month activity also declined in all four regions, with the West having the largest decline, followed by the South, Midwest and Northeast, the report said.
A big culprit in the September decline was fast-rising mortgage rates, said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.
“Although job growth and income gains can support home purchases, housing affordability is more affected by changes in mortgage rates,” he said in a statement.
He added that as mortgage rates have already risen much more than the Federal Reserve’s short-term interest rate hikes, they could be topping out.
“However, increasing energy prices and the resulting inflationary pressure are highly uncertain,” he noted, adding, “Despite the difficulty of obtaining a mortgage, the limited number of distressed properties is ensuring steady home prices. Buyers and sellers may simply be holding back until mortgage rates move favorably.”
By region, activity was as follows:
September 2026 Regional Pending Home Sales
+ In the Northeast pending home sales decreased 9.4% year over year and 4.2% month over month.
+ In the Midwest, they decreased 8.7% year over year and 6.5% from August.
+ In the South, they decreased 12% from September 2025 and 8.2% from August.
+ In the West, they decreased 15% from September 2025 and 9.2% from August.
The NAR also said that pending home sales declined from September 2025 in some of the strongest markets, including these 10 markets that are part of the 50 largest metro areas.
- Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN (-2.0%)
- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT (-2.1%)
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA (-3.5%)
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA (-4.6%)
- Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY (-5.6%)
- Richmond, VA (-5.8%)
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX (-5.9%)
- Pittsburgh, PA (-6.2%)
- Memphis, TN-MS-AR (-6.3%)
- San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX (-7.1%)
For furniture stores in these and other regions, paying close attention to such economic indicators can not only explain the bigger picture of existing home sales. They also can help offer insights into how to plan for downturns and potential rebounds in sales activity.
Pockets of growth also could be happening in your own region or community, so marketing to these new homeowners is an important way to capture business now and in the future.
