1033 ET - A mortgage rate can make or break a deal. That much is clear after a report from Redfin shows pending home sales fell 4.5% month over month in December on a seasonally adjusted basis, the largest decline since October 2022. The decline came as mortgage rates began to climb in December and now sit above 7%. Home purchases fell through at the highest December rate on record, likely contributing to the declining in pending sales, says the real-estate brokerage company. Nearly 40,000 home-purchase agreements were canceled in December, equal to about 16% of homes that went under contract that month, it adds. (denny.jacob@wsj.com; @pennedbyden)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 17, 2025 10:33 ET (15:33 GMT)

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