Home sales nationwide collapsed to their lowest level in 15 years, depressed by a tax credit expiration, a slowing economy and mid-summer doldrums, local and national real estate observers said Tuesday, Aug. 24.

Sales of single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops dropped 25.5 percent last month from July 2009 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.83 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Local home sales also plunged last month when compared with July 2009. The Dayton Area Board of Realtors said sales fell 26 percent to 777 homes. Previously this year, the lowest sales mark was 1,777 homes in January.

The summertime blues aren’t unusual in the real estate market, local real estate agents say.

Sales in the first half of 2010 were “very strong,” said Deb McCuiston, president of the Dayton Area Board of Realtors.

But by July and August, McCuiston said vacations and the school year’s return tend to push sales down.

Steve Brown, broker and president of Irongate Realtors, believes hot weather also contributes to slower sales.

“That does affect people,” Brown said.

“I think people are not as inclined to go out and look at housing.”

The average price of the homes sold last month was $128,075, down 8.3 percent from last July’s $139,786.

Other factors were at work last month.

Brown thinks a “tax credit push” pulled sales up in the first half of the year as buyers sought to take advantage of a credit worth up to $8,000 for contracts signed by April 30. Those deals need to be closed by Sept. 30.

And the weak economy has created a “reluctance” among consumers to make a major purchase, according to Brown and others.

“If you’re concerned about your own job, you’re not going to be out looking for a home,” said Paul Bishop, vice president of research for the National Association of Realtors.

“It sounds like a tired phrase, but it’s really all about jobs at this point.”

Tyler Morton, broker and owner for ReMax Victory, cautioned against reading too much into one month’s results. He said his firm’s sales were up 30 percent in June compared with June 2009 .

“They’re not bad at all,” Morton said of sales. “We had our best June ever.”

Brown’s advice to would-be home sellers is to price the home realistically given current market conditions and comparable sales. Everyone should embrace the notion that homes are places to live, not investments certain to appreciate by large amounts annually.

And for prospective home buyers, “there couldn’t be a better time ever to buy real estate, especially homes,” Brown said.