CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- Something unexpected happened in the housing market in February -- sales of existing homes actually went up. But that doesn't mean the housing slump is necessarily coming to an end.

At Greater Miami Investments in Coral Gables, Realtor Ileana Abella said she is putting in more hours every week.

"I'm receiving more calls now. My phones are ringing a lot more. I'm noticing more activity," Abella said.

Abella said she has noticed an increase in the number of buyers who are curious, not eager.

"The buyers are still here. I just think that they're scared. They are holding back. They're waiting to see if prices are going to go down any more," she said.

Home sales are up slightly across the country, even in Florida. Fifteen hundred more homes were sold in the state in February than in January. But overbuilding, overpricing and a mortgage crisis have Florida's real estate market crying for the good old days -- just two years ago.

"We had times when we had three buyers for the same property, fighting for the property," Abella said.

Abella said headline headaches also have slowed the market.

"It probably has a lot to do with the negative publicity that Florida has been getting from the media in general," she said.

Florida's existing home sales year to year are still lower than the national average, and the median home sale price in Florida dropped more from year to year than the national average. In February 2007, the median home in Florida was $237,000. In February 2008, it was down to $198,000.

"If the buyer wants to buy, this is the time," Abella said.

For sellers, Abella has this advice: "They're going to have to price it competitively. They're going to have to be ready to negotiate with that buyer."