FLASH: U.S. pending home sales index slips in Oct

I love the "Soft Landing" language from the NAR. Reminds me of the movie Titanic when the ship stewards are telling people to remain calm, don't panic, all will be well

I'd be grabbing my life jacket about now...

An index of pending U.S. home sales slipped in October to its lowest since March, pointing to a modest slowing in national housing markets, the National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday.

The Pending Home Sales Index, based on data collected in October, stood at 123.8, down 3.2 percent from September and down 3.3 percent from a year earlier. It was the lowest level for the index since it stood at 123.7 in March.

David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, said the decline was expected and showed "a modest slowing" in housing markets.

"The index is pointing to a soft landing for home sales, which will help to correct the inventory shortages that have dominated housing over the last five years," Lereah said. "This should restore balance to the market."