Pending home sales in March increased by 1.5% from the prior month and declined 1.1% 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 and South, and declined in the Midwest and West. Year-over-year pending home sales rose in the South, and declined in the Northeast, Midwest and West.
“Contract signings rose in March despite higher mortgage rates, pointing to pent-up housing demand,” said NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun. “A greater supply of inventory will help translate that demand into more home sales.”
“Demand sensitivity to mortgage rates is greatest among first-time buyers, particularly younger buyers,” Yun said. “As a result, boosting supply and new-home construction should focus on smaller, more affordable homes.”
“A good number of markets in the South experienced price cuts over the past year but recorded the strongest job growth,” Yun added. “That combination should lead to stronger housing market activity in the South this year.”
March 2026 National Pending Home Sales
- 1.5% increase month over month
- 1.1% decrease year over year
March 2026 Regional Pending Home Sales
Northeast
- 4.4% increase month over month
- 6.5% decrease year over year
Midwest
- 1.3% decrease month over month
- 3.1% decrease year over year
South
- 3.9% increase month over month
- 2.3% increase year over year
West
- 2.6% decrease month over month
- 1.7% decrease year over year
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:
-
Kansas City, MO-KS (+14.9%)
- Milwaukee–Waukesha, WI (+13.5%)
- Austin–Round Rock–San Marcos, TX (+12.8%)
- Phoenix–Mesa–Chandler, AZ (+12.1%)
- Raleigh–Cary, NC (+10.0%)
- Portland–Vancouver–Hillsboro, OR-WA (+9.7%)
- Richmond, VA (+8.5%)
- Virginia Beach–Chesapeake–Norfolk, VA-NC (+8.5%)
- Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, TX (+8.1%)
- Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV (+8.0%)
About the National Association of REALTORS®
The National Association of REALTORS® is involved in all aspects of residential and commercial real estate. The term REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics. For free consumer guides about navigating the homebuying and selling transaction processes – from written buyer agreements to negotiating compensation – visit facts.realtor.