Pending Home Sales Surged in February

Washington, DC, April 5, 2010--Pending home sales rose 8.2% in February, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The index had fallen 7.8% in January and was down 20% from October.

The pending home sales index is up 17.3% compared with a year earlier. Economists were looking for a decline or a smaller increase.

Sales contracts increased about 9% in the Northeast and South, and about 22% in the Midwest. Sales contracts declined about 5% in the West.