Pending home sales sagged for the third straight month in August, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Three out of four major regions experienced month-over-month decreases in transactions, however, the West saw a modest gain. Year-over-year, all four regions posted double-digit declines. The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings, fell 2.0% to 88.4 in August. Year-over-year, pending transactions dwindled by 24.2%. An index of 100 is equal to the level of contract activity in 2001. "The direction of mortgage rates – upward or downward – is ... (full story)