After over a year of a fluctuating housing market, sales in the Midwest, which started recovering in the winter, rose almost 3 percent in June.
The National Association of Realtors says it's the first annual increase since September.
The median sales price in the 12-state region fell 9 percent from year-ago levels, to $157,000.
All 12 Midwest cities tracked in the Associated Press-Re/Max Monthly Housing Report showed sales gains in each of the past three months.
Compared with a year ago, sales of existing homes continued to fall in 8 of the 12 markets. The AP-Re/Max report says only Omaha and Cleveland showed double-digit losses.
