Pending home sales rise across U.S.

Pending sales of existing homes rose 3.6 percent in June compared to May, according to the National Association of Realtors. The gain is higher than the 1.2 to 3 percent increase economists anticipated, and they attributed the rise to declining home prices and low mortgage rates. Maxwell Clarke, chief U.S. economist at IDEAglobal, told Bloomberg News that the housing market is “finding its legs.” But Commerce Department data released today show that personal income fell 1.3 percent in June, and unemployment continues to increase, meaning that it may take months for the housing market to stabilize.