Pending home sales in April rose a slight 0.3 percent to 106.0 on the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI). In March the index was at 105.7. The index is now 10.3 percent above the April 2012 level of 96.1 continuing a 24 month pattern of year-over-year increases.

The April Index is the highest since April 2010, immediately before the deadline to qualify for home buyer tax credits. In that period the Index hit 110.9.

NAR's PHSI reflects contract signings not home sales. It is a forward looking index that general portends actual sales transactions 30 to 60 days later.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said a familiar pattern has developed.  "The housing market continues to squeak out gains from already very positive conditions.  Pending contracts so far this year easily correspond to higher closed home sales in 2013," he said.  Total existing-home sales are expected to rise just over 7 percent to about 5 million this year.

"Because of inventory shortages, higher home sales will push up home values to the highest level in five years," Yun said.  The national median existing-home price should increase close to 8 percent and exceed $190,000 in 2013.

Pending home sale gains in the Northeast and Midwest were offset largely by declines in the West and South. In the Northeast contract activity jumped 11.5 percent to a PHSI of 92.3 in April and was 17.7 percent above a year ago.  In the Midwest the index rose 3.2 percent to 107.1 and was 15.1 percent higher than April 2012.  Pending home sales in the South slipped 1.1 percent to an index of 119.2 in April but remained 12.3 percent above a year ago.  With pronounced inventory constraints, the index in the West fell 7.6 percent in April to 94.6 and was 2.6 percent below April 2012.

NAR's PHSI is based on a large national sample, typically representing about 20 percent of transactions for existing-home sales.  An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, which was the first year to be examined.