By Rex Nutting
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - An index that tracks pending sales of existing homes rose a seasonally adjusted 6.1% in September, the eighth consecutive increase, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday. Pending sales are up 19.8% compared with September 2008. Buyers were rushing to beat the expiration of an $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time buyers, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the real estate lobbying and advocacy group. Sales activity typically drops in the fall. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, pending sales fell 7.8% in September.
