By Ruth Mantell
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Pending home sales fell 4.3% in December, with low inventory cutting results, according to data released Monday by the National Association of Realtors. The trade group's pending-home-sales index declined to 101.7 in December from 106.3 in November. A reading of 100 equals the average level of contract activity in 2001, when NAR started tracking these data. "Supplies of homes costing less than $100,000 are tight in much of the country, especially in the West, so first-time buyers have fewer options," said Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist. "We expect a seasonal rise of inventory in the spring to help, but a seller's market may be developing." Despite the recent decline, pending sales were 6.9% higher than during December 2011. By region, December saw pending-home-sales declines of 8.2% in the West, 5.4% in the Northeast and 4.5% in the South. There was a gain of 0.9% in the Midwest. "Much of the West is already a seller's market for homes priced under a million dollars, but conditions are much more balanced in the Northeast," Yun said.
