The number of previously owned homes sold in February was virtually unchanged from the month before, according to data recently released by the National Association of Realtors. Total existing-home sales dropped just 0.4 percent from January and are now 7.1 percent below year-before levels. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said there were unusual weather disruptions across much of the country in February and that, along with constrained inventory and less favorable affordability conditions, led to a largely unchanged sales rate. But Yun expects sales to pick up over the months ahead, adding that some transactions are simply being delayed and, with an expected improvement in job creation, home sales should trend up modestly over the course of the year. In fact, in regions where winter weather wasn’t an issue, home sales have already risen. The West and South both saw sales increases in February, while the Midwest and Northeast experienced declines. Also, the median existing-home price for all housing types was $189,000, which is 9.1 percent above February 2013. More here.