The Northeast Florida Association of Realtors says homes cost almost 17% less last month than they did the same time last year.

But just over 1,300 were sold, and that's a 27% increase over last year.

And the group says more people in Jacksonville are taking advantage of that first time homebuyer's tax credit, which was extended last month.

Here is the official news release:

The Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NEFAR) announces real estate market statistics for October 2009.

Home sales in the Jacksonville MSA for October continued on an upward track, with closed sales coming in at 1,303 - a 27.1 percent increase from the 1,025 October 2008 figure. Pending sales spiked up dramatically, with a 78.8 percent increase over October 2008. Pending sales during the past few months have continued to increase, without doubt an indicator that first-time homebuyers were taking advantage of the $8,000 federal tax credit. With the recent homebuyer tax credit extension and expansion, we anticipate continued strong buyer activity.

Sales prices are much lower than last year's levels. The average sales price during October 2009 was $179,205, a 16.8 percent decrease from the $215, 516 average in October 2008. The reduced pricing continues to make this a buyer's market.

These figures, along with many others, are included in the FREE statistics packages available on the Newsroom | Market Stats tab of www.NEFAR.com. The statistics packages include a monthly report summarizing all activity for NEFAR's entire service area plus *partial information for St. Johns County and Nassau County. FREE foreclosure/short sale reports are also available in the same area of the site.

The Northeast Florida Association of Realtors is headquartered in Jacksonville with satellite service centers in Orange Park, Jacksonville Beach and Palatka. NEFAR is the largest professional/trade association in northeast Florida, serving more than 5,500 Realtor and affiliate/business partner members in Duval, Clay, Putnam and St. Johns counties. All statistics in NEFAR's market and foreclosure/short sale reports are based on data compiled from NEFAR's wholly owned subsidiary, the Northeast Florida Multiple Listing Service (NEFMLS).