The steady decline of single-family home prices in Maine, ongoing since June, ended in December, according to the Maine Association of Realtors. The average price in December 2022, however, was still higher than a year before.

Data from December 2022, released today, showed a median sale price of $330,000, inching up from the $325,000 median price recorded in November.

Prices in 2022 peaked in June at $360,835.

For 2022 overall, the association showed a median sale price of $335,000, an increase of slightly more than 12% compared to 2021. Home sales were down in 2022 by nearly 17.5% compared to 2021.

“We’re seeing a bit of a pause as buyers and sellers are adjusting their expectations due to today’s less-favorable financing terms compared to mid-2022,” said Carmen McPhail, the association’s president. “As we move through 2023, we expect would-be buyers to re-engage with the market and the demand for residential real estate to remain high. Conditions are favorable for a gradual balancing of the real estate market.”

Month by month, median prices continued to be higher in 2022 than they were in their respective months in 2021. 

December 2022’s $330,000 median price was 8.9% higher than the median price in December 2021, according to the association. 

Sale volumes in December 2022 stood at 1,091, down from the 1,300 the association reported in November 2022 and down more than 36.5% compared to December 2021.

Data from the National Association of Realtors showed sales in December 2022 had dropped 33.5% nationwide compared to December 2021. The national median sale price went up by 2% to $372,700. In the northeast, sales in December 2022 dropped by 28.8% compared to 2021, and the median price went up by 1.6% to $391,400.

The association’s data, broken down by county, shows Cumberland County had the highest median sale price, at $491,723, which is an increase of just over 13% compared to 2021. Aroostook had the lowest median price of $148,800, an increase of 24% over the previous year.

Cumberland County also led the state in sales volume, with 3,306 units sold in 2022, a decline of more than 17% over 2021. Piscataquis County had the fewest sales, at 341, a decline of 19% over 2021.