By Tim Richardson (contact)

Wed, Aug 6, 2008 (3:16 p.m.)

Home sales picked up their pace last month as prices continued their slide.

The number of homes sold by a Realtor in the Las Vegas area last month increased for a seventh consecutive month. The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors said today that 2,592 single-family homes were sold in July, compared to 2,226 in June. The July number is up 97 percent from July 2007.

Despite the sales increase, the median price of homes sold last month was down to $220,000. That's a decrease of more than 2 percent compared to last month and a fall of more than 25 percent in the past year.

“As in past months, these latest GLVAR statistics are a mixed bag,” Realtor association President Patty Kelley said in a statement today.

Kelley said bank-owned houses are dragging prices down.

Nevada had the highest foreclosure rate in the nation in the second quarter of the year, according to data from Calif.-based RealtyTrac Inc. In Las Vegas, one in every 35 households received a foreclosure notice last quarter -- the third-highest rate of any city in the country.

The Realtor association said 358 condos were sold last month, which is up from 294 in June and up 18 percent compared to July 2007. The median price of those condos, at $135,000, fell nearly 2 percent in the last month, and has fallen about 31 percent in the past year, according to numbers released today.

The number of homes and condos for sale remained steady, with 23,423 homes and 5,538 condos on the market.

At July's sales pace, the valley has a nine-month supply of homes and a 15 1/2-month supply of condos on the market.