Gaines: Pattern shows U.S. housing market doing well

​​​NEW YORK – New home sales in September dropped 15.2 percent from August, while pending sales of previously owned homes fell 2.3 percent.

While those numbers were disappointing to some economists, Real Estate Center Chief Economist​ Dr. Jim Gaines said not to sound the alarm just yet.

“It’s tough to go on month-to-month data," Gaines said. "Anything can happen in a given month like weather. Every month, they change the previous month’s estimate, so you can’t get too carried away. The pattern over the last several months shows that the housing sector is doing well.”