Pending home sales in May increased by 3.8% month-over-month and 4.8% year-over-year, according to the National Association of REALTORS® Pending Home Salesreport. 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 and year-over-year pending home sales rose in the Northeast, Midwest, South and West.
“A late spring buyer rush—even with mortgage rates not budging—is an indication of pent-up housing demand and consumers’ acceptance of above-6% mortgage rates as the new normal,” said NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun. “The inventory-constrained Northeast region, which has seen faster home price growth but slower home sales for several months, is now showing more buyer contract signings. More supply is needed to help moderate home price growth.”
“Going forward, falling oil prices will help lower mortgage rates,” Yun said. “But declines will be modest given sizable borrowing by the federal government and strong AI investment spending by tech companies.”
May 2026 National Pending Home Sales
- 3.8% increase month-over-month
- 4.8% increase year-over-year
May 2026 Regional Pending Home Sales
Northeast
- 8.7% increase month-over-month
- 6.1% increase year-over-year
Midwest
- 8.1% increase month-over-month
- 9.3% increase year-over-year
South
- 1.0% increase month-over-month
- 3.3% increase year-over-year
West
- 0.7% increase month-over-month
- 1.2% increase 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 (+20.1%)
- San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX (+15.7%)
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI (+13.9%)
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL (+11.4%)
- Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN (+11.2%)
- Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN (+10.1%)
- Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN (+9.4%)
- Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI (+8.7%)
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC (+8.2%)
- Richmond, VA (+8.2%)
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.