With the vacation season pretty much over, people are settling back into their regular life but also looking to the future by considering their next housing move before the next set of holidays at the end of the year. As a result, the housing market is picking up its pace.

According to the National Association of Realtors “pending home sales retreated in August but remained at a healthy level of activity and have now risen year on year for 12 consecutive months.”

The NAR has also announced that their Pending Home Sales Index is up 6.1 percent year on year, which represents a significant rise considering that pending sales are the key indicator for the real estate market. This figure shows the number of transactions which are under contract but not yet closed and helps determine not only where the market is today, but also its current direction.

“Pending sales have leveled off since mid-summer, with buyers being bounded by rising prices and few available and affordable properties within their budget,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR. “Even with existing-housing supply barely budging all summer and no relief coming from new construction, contract activity is still higher than earlier this year and a year ago.”

There has been a small 7 percent dip since May in housing supply in Chester County, and down slightly from last August, however, pending sales for homes in Chester County for this August rose by 8.9 percent. Considering that overall pending home transactions in Chester County went up by 17 percent, it is clear that the situation is looking good for the housing market as the figures indicate that more people are moving into the area.

While things look good at the moment, Yun warns that there could be the possibility of a few “looming speed bumps” which could cool the real estate market. The uncertainty surrounding government shutdowns, volatile equity markets, and the latest changes to the TRID rules and procedures for closing home loans are just some of the possible obstacles which could potentially affect the market in the coming months, however for now, the real estate market is enjoying the boost.