WASHINGTON - Existing home sales in the Midwest region of the country posted a healthy increase in September compared to a year ago, because the median home price continued to fall, making homes affordable for more buyers, the National Association of Realtors said Friday.

Sales rose 5 percent, while the median price slid 7.9 percent to $152,500.

Nationally, home sales were a little stronger than the Midwest, jumping 7.8 percent, without adjusting for seasonal factors. The median price, however, tumbled 9 percent to $191,600.

Real estate trends not only vary by region, but also within each region.

Home sales fell last month in seven out of 12 major Midwestern metro areas tracked in The Associated Press-Re/Max Monthly Housing Report, but rose in the other five. The report analyzed home sales recorded by all real estate agents in the metro areas, regardless of company affiliation.

In terms of number of units sold in residential properties compared to September, Bismarck-Mandan is up 3 percent. In terms of average price sold, there was a 7 percent adjustment down to $156, 428, according to Nancy Diechert, director of the Bismarck-Mandan Board of Realtors.

The biggest sales drop was in St. Louis, which saw sales decline by 43 percent from September a year ago, while prices dipped 1 percent to a median of $144,000.

Buyers, however, returned to the market to take advantage of deep discounts in Detroit and Minneapolis, which have both seen dramatic surges in foreclosures and big price declines.

Sales in Detroit were up 42 percent, while prices fell 31 percent to a median of $80,000. Sales in Minneapolis were up 24 percent, while prices fell 18 percent to a median of $185,000.

The median sales price fell - compared with last year - in nine cities in the AP-Re/Max report, but rose in three. The biggest declines were in Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago, Cleveland and Milwaukee.

Bucking that trend were smaller cities: Wichita, Kan., where prices rose 3.5 percent to a median of $118,000 and Fargo, N.D., where prices rose 2.4 percent to a median of $140,000. In Omaha, Neb., prices were up 1.4 percent at $142,000.

"With all the bad news I'm hearing about everyplace else, we feel pretty fortunate," said Kris Sheridan, president of Park Company Realtors in Fargo. Nevertheless, sales slid about 14 percent in Fargo compared with a year ago, according to the AP-Re/Max report.

Stephen Wilson and his fiance, Sarah Clark, purchased a three-bedroom, $130,000 home in Fargo last month. They had been living in an apartment for nearly two years were able to save up about $5,000 to qualify for a Federal Housing Administration loan, which requires a 3.5 percent down payment.

Despite the worldwide credit market turmoil, Wilson said the loan process "was really a snap."

"I think we felt confident about our jobs, felt secure in the area and in the neighborhood," said Wilson, who noted that "we didn't want to overbuy."

It's a different story, though in places like Michigan. That state, whose fortunes are dependent on the struggling U.S. auto industry, has lost nearly 520,000 jobs, or more than 11 percent of total employment, since June 2000, according to William Strauss, senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Around the Midwest, as the economy sinks, more layoffs are likely, particularly in smaller midwestern cities that are depend on manufacturing companies for jobs. "Certainly that will have an impact on the housing market," Strauss said.

In the area of Kansas City, Mo., the economy is a big worry - especially given concerns that a major local employer, Sprint Nextel Corp., will shrink further.

People facing a job loss or other financial problems "have to sell quick. They can't hold out for a better price," said real estate agent Chris Dowell, who calls the sagging economy "the number one thing that people are reacting to."

Sales in Kansas City and its suburbs were up 2 percent in September, while prices fell 5 percent to a median of $123,000.

Chicago and its suburbs showed the third-largest price drop of the Midwest cities tracked in the AP-Re/Max report, falling 12 percent from last year to a median sales price of $219,000 as sales fell 7.7 percent in August.

Al Scheiderer, a real estate agent who works in Naperville, Ill., west of Chicago, said buyers are looking for a bargain, but most don't want to put in enough work to fix up a foreclosed property. In many cases, the kitchen appliances are gone, the carpets are "filthy" and there is mold damage.

"Everybody hears about all these great deals out there so they want one for themselves," he said. "However sellers of properties in better shape, are reluctant to bring the price down to the point where it's going to sell the house."