NAR Pending Home Sales Report Shows 1.4% Increase in April
WASHINGTON (May 19, 2026) – Pending home sales in April increased by 1.4% month over month and rose 3.2% year over year, according to the National Association of REALTORS® Pending Home Sales report. The report provides the real estate ecosystem—including agents, homebuyers and sellers—with data on the level of home sales under contract.
Month over month pending home sales rose in the Northeast, Midwest and West, and declined in the South. Year over year pending home sales rose in the Midwest, South and West, and declined in the Northeast.
“Buyers are coming out with cautious optimism despite increasing economic uncertainty and a slight rise in mortgage rates,” said NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun. “Demand will easily be even higher once mortgage rates retreat to the levels they were at earlier this year.”
“Historically low foreclosure sales imply minimal price discounts, with a majority of markets selling at a higher price from a year ago,” Yun said. “Unless supply meaningfully increases, home price growth could outpace wage growth and further erode the homeownership rate. All efforts need to be focused on boosting housing supply.”
At the local level, several markets posted notable year-over-year gains in pending home sales. Among the 50 largest metro areas, the following 10 markets posted the biggest annual increases in pending home sales, according to data from Realtor.com® Economics:
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH (+10.3%)
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL (+9.4%)
- Oklahoma City, OK (+8.6%)
- Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI (+7.4%)
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC (+7.2%)
- Raleigh-Cary, NC (+5.7%)
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX (+5.5%)
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV (+5.4%)
- Columbus, OH (+5.4%)
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC (+5.1%)
April 2026 National Pending Home Sales
1.4% increase month over month
Gains in the Northeast, Midwest and West; decline in the South
3.2% increase year over year
Gains in the Midwest, South and West; decline in the Northeast
April 2026 Regional Pending Home Sales
Northeast
6.6% increase month over month
0.6% decrease year over year
Midwest
3.0% increase month over month
2.7% increase year over year
South
0.7% decrease month over month
4.7% increase year over year
West
0.4% increase month over month
3.8% increase year over year
