Sales of existing homes are likely to keep falling in the coming months as the mortgage crisis continues to weaken the housing market.The Pending Home Sales Index, released by the National Association of Realtors, declined 12.2 percent in July from the month before and was 16.1 percent lower than July 2006. The index is based on transactions where contracts were signed in July but had not yet closed."Our members are telling us some sales contracts aren’t closing because mortgage commitments have been falling through at the last moment," NAR senior economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement.The ripple effects are also being felt throughout the Valley, as real estate agents, home sellers and new home builders watch deals fall through because of tightening lending standards.

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