Pending home sales edged lower in February, according to a report today from the National Association of Realtors, CNBC reported.

The pending home sales index slipped by 0.5 percent to 96.5 in February from 97  the previous month, but it was up 9.2 percent from the year-earlier period.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected signed contracts, which lead existing home sales by a month or two, to advance 1 percent, after a previously reported 2 percent rise.

Pending sales were strongest in the Midwest, where they jumped 6.5 percent, a 19 percent increase from February 2011.

The weakest region for sales was in the South, where they fell 3 percent. In the West, pending sales dropped 2.6 percent in February to 99.3, while in the Northeast, they were down 0.6 percent.