The index came in at 72.0, a 2.0% rise from the previous month but a 3.6% drop from one year ago. Pending home sales were expected to rise 0.9% month-over-month.

Pending sales dropped 4.6% from December to the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001. While weather may have been a factor, sales rose month ...