WASHINGTON: US pending home sales fell for the third consecutive month in September as the housing market continues to scrape bottom five years after a price bubble burst, an industry survey showed Thursday.
The National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, fell 4.6 percent to 84.5 in September from 88.6 in August.
The reading was 6.4 percent higher than in September 2010, NAR said.
Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, said the troubled housing market was being overly constrained.
"A combination of weak consumer confidence and continuing tight lending criteria held back home buyers, even though the private sector added nearly 2 million net new jobs in the past 12 months," he said.
The forward-looking index is based on pending sales of existing homes, representing a signed contract but not a final transaction.
A week ago NAR reported that sales of previously owned homes -- so-called "existing" homes that make up the majority of the housing market -- dropped three percent in September from August.
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