The sales of existing-home sales were up in March, continuing an uneven recovery that began after sales were down last July, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Existing-home sales increased 3.7%.  Sales were at elevated levels from March through June of 2010 because many home buyers used the home buyer tax credit. March saw another increase in pending home sales, with contract activity rising unevenly in six of the past nine months, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.

 The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 5.1 percent to 94.1 in March from a downwardly revised 89.5 in February. The index is 11.4 percent below 106.2 in March 2010; however, activity was at elevated levels in March and April of 2010 to meet the contract deadline for the home buyer tax credit. The data reflects contracts but not closings, which normally occur with a lag time of one or two months. “The index means modest near-term gains in existing-home sales are likely, which would be even stronger if tight mortgage lending criteria returned to normal, safe standards”. Says Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “Based on the current uptrend with very favorable affordability conditions, rising apartment rents, and ongoing job creation, existing-home sales should rise around 5 to 10 percent this year with sales growth of lower-priced homes likely to outperform high-end homes. That means the price trend will reflect more homes sold in the lower price ranges,” Yun said. “The good news is that recent home buyers are staying well within budget, leading to exceptionally low loan-default rates among home buyers over the past two years,” he added.

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