WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Pending sales of homes declined 0.4% in February, while longer-term trends showed continuing growth, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. The pending-home-sales index decreased to 104.8 in February from 105.2 in January, but was up more than 8% from 96.6 in February 2012. An index reading of 100 equals the average level of contract activity during 2001, the first year of data. By region, February saw pending-home-sale declines of 2.5% in the Northeast and 0.3% in the South. Meanwhile, there were monthly increases of 0.4% in the Midwest and 0.1% in the West. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed. Typically, sales are finalized within two months of signing. Lower pending home sales signal that actual home sales may decline in coming months.
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