Aug. 10--Tri-City home sales are picking up speed and the lower-priced market is starting to favor sellers, industry officials say.

"It's nuts," said Glen Clark, president of the Tri-City Association of Realtors. "If they're priced well and the condition's good, they're selling in a week."

The number of homes sold in the first six months of the year was down about 17 percent compared with the same time last year, from 1,517 to 1,261, according to information from the association.

Activity picked up in July, with 336 homes sold, compared with 298 in July 2008. That means total sales this year lag last year by about 12 percent through July.

But if no new homes priced at $150,000 or below came on the market, it would take about 3.3 months before that inventory was all sold, according to information from the Tri-Cities Multiple Listing Service and compiled by Coldwell Banker Tomlinson Associated Brokers. That's based on the average sales pace in the particular price range in the last 12 months, said Paul Roy, sales manager for Coldwell Banker Tomlinson.

A market is considered balanced when the home supply would last about six months.

"We're really liking the numbers," he said. "A lot of sellers are thinking they can sell, so more listings are coming on, but they're selling."

All homes priced between $150,000 and $200,000 would be sold in 4.2 months, according to Coldwell.

And in the $200,000 to $300,000 range, it would take about 5.7 months to deplete the inventory.

The upper end of the market continues to struggle with oversupply. About a 13.5-month supply remains of homes priced from $400,000 to $500,000.

Unlike some areas of the country, prices in the Tri-Cities have continued to hold, according to information from the association.

The average sales price for the first half of the year was $185,500, down about 1 percent from $187,300 in the same time in 2008.

The median sales price, meaning half of the homes sold for more and half for less, also declined about 1 percent, from $164,100 in January through June 2008 to $162,600 during the same time in 2009.

Building activity has picked up in recent months, said Jeff Losey, executive director of the Home Builders Association of Tri-Cities.

At the end of the first quarter the number of new home permits was off nearly 46 percent. By the end of June, permits were down 28 percent from the same time last year, from 720 to 519.

And as of July 31, permits were off 18 percent, at 678 total for 2009.

"It's still tough for builders to get money" for spec homes, Losey said.