October 2018 Pending Home Sales Index for Ohio

Ohio REALTORS® report the number of singlefamily homes and condominiums put under agreement in October 2018 fell 4.8 percent from the best-ever level posted during the month a year ago.

Ohio’s October Pending Home Sales Index of 172.3, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, decreased 4.8 percent from month’s record-setting pace set in October 2017 (181.1). Activity in October rose 1.8 percent from the pace of agreements reached in September 2018 (169.2).

“The Ohio housing market is continuing to build a solid foundation, with the pace of purchase contracts recorded in October attaining the second-best level ever for the month,” said Ohio REALTORS® President Tiffany Meyer. “The uptick in contract signings the market experienced from the September level is a clear indication that the desire for homeownership remains strong throughout Ohio.”

Compared to 2008, a historically healthy market that marked the end of five consecutive record years for existing home sales and the onset of the recession, October’s Index score of 172.3 marks a 72.3 percent increase.

A pending sale or a sale “under agreement” is when the buyer and seller agree on terms of the sale of a home and have a signed purchase and sale agreement but have yet to close and be recorded as such.

Ohio REALTORS®, the largest professional trade association in the state with more than 33,000 members, is the only organization that compiles this statewide information from selected Multiple Listing Services each month. The tracking of “pending sales” provides reliable information about where the market is heading in coming months.

Remember, when you’re ready to buy or sell your home, members of the Lorain County Association of REALTORS® is here to assist. They care about the community in which they live, work and support. Lorain County offers a wide variety of choices.

The Lorain County Association of REALTORS® is one of more than 1,200 local boards and associations of REALTORS® nationwide that comprise the National Association of REALTORS®. The National Association of REALTORS®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing more than one million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

The Lorain County Association of REALTORS® offers a website that provides a complete listing of REALTOR® real estate brokerages in Lorain County, contact information for REALTOR® members, and industry associates. If you are a first-time homebuyer or a repeat buyer consider www.MyNewCommunity.net or www.LoCAR.org as a good source for Lorain County REALTOR® information.

REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark which may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics. Not all real estate sales agents are REALTORS®. All REALTORS® are members of NAR along with their State and Local Associations.

Janet Beane