Real estate officials expected a dramatic slide from November to December but the fears turned to a sigh of relief as the housing numbers remained level for another month.

The median closing price for residential homes dropped slightly in December to $145,000 from $145,600 in November, according to real estate figures. The number of houses sold in December rose for the first time in several months to 139 from 129 in November and 132 in October.

“I’m really excited,” said Lake Havasu Association of Realtors President Suzanne White. “For December, which is traditionally one of our worst months, to be higher (in number of sales) than November, that’s exciting. It’s showing me more people here are wanting to own a home and that’s a sign of a stable market.”

The number of houses on the market also dropped to their lowest in several months to 902 from 947 in November and 974 in October. The drop marked another positive sign for White.

“It’s great, actually. The further it goes down the better,” she said. “That will keep our prices stable, which they seem to be stabilizing in the last few months.”

Real estate agents and buyers are still finding difficulty with short sales and foreclosures, White said, but negotiating with banks may be getting easier.

“Banks are accepting lower prices, which is good, and they’re wanting to get rid of the properties and not go through the expense of the foreclosed,” White said. “There still are some issues but you just have to be right on top of the game. If the bank calls you about anything, you need to respond immediately because you may not get another chance. Some day, we’re hoping the state will get involved and streamline it.”

The closing price for foreclosures in December ($123,700) dropped from November ($130,000). White said she still expects to see more foreclosures listed in January, but the signs of leveling off might indicate fewer foreclosures hit the area than she originally thought.

“Banks keep hinting that there are going to be more foreclosed properties hitting the market but we haven’t seen them hit yet,” White said. “We’re hoping it will be minor for us because it could make things a lot tougher.”

Former LHAR President Pat Landry said she still anticipates seeing a rise in foreclosures next month.

“We know more foreclosures are coming on the market,” Landry said. “And we’ve seen a sign of that with more listed than a month ago, but sales are going through steadily.”

White said rumblings of a possible double-dip recession on the market, where the economy sees a slight rise followed by another recession, is unlikely to happen in Lake Havasu City.

“I don’t think that’s going to happen here,” she said. “Based on it being a recreation and resort area, if it does nationwide, it’s not going to affect us as hard as it will anywhere else.”

The number of houses sold in December (139) continued to rise substantially compared to a year ago (97), while the median closing price ($145,000) widened the gap slightly from December 2008 ($160,000).

“A year ago we had 1,400 homes on the market,” Landry said. “We’ve dropped more than 500 homes in a year. So to me, that’s a sing that things are getting better because people are definitely buying a lot more than they were.”

White said she expects closing prices to rise soon, but wouldn’t be surprised if it took another year.

“I’m not real certain as to when it’s going to happen. We’re going to stay level for a little while,” she said. “Our median price had one low month in October 2009 and the rest have been pretty consistent. I’m thinking it’s going to stay at this level at least through 2010 and we should see a rise after that.”

You can contact the reporter at nbruttell@havasunews.com