Home prices in Maine cooled in November and more units were sold, providing buyers with two developments that are welcome but not consistent enough to signal a trend.

The median sales price — the point where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less — reached $385,000, up 8.5% from November 2023, according to data released Thursday by the Maine Association of Realtors. It’s down from $395,000 in October.

The number of units sold increased 6.8%, to 1,301. Paul McKee, president of the Realtors group, said Maine is benefiting from a “little more inventory. Not a lot. We’re not where we need to be.”

“We’re seeing promising signs that the real estate market is beginning to show signs of shifting slightly, with supply increasing and slower price appreciation,” he said.

Higher home prices that fall short of double-digit increases are welcome, he said. “We need to be in single digits. We’re fortunate we’re seeing more single-digit months,” McKee said.

Cumberland County was No. 1 in Maine with a median sale price of $550,000 in the Sept. 1-Nov. 30 quarter. But it was the only county where the price didn’t budge from the same three months in 2023.

York County posted the strongest gain in median sale price, up 14.4%, reaching $535,000 in the three-month period. McKee said such a large gain is not sustainable.

Home prices rose by 10% in the September-November quarter in Kennebec, Oxford and Penobscot counties.

Prices fell in Piscatiquas, Washington and Franklin counties, with the steepest drop in Piscataquis County, which posted a 17.8% drop, to $168,500 from $205,000.

Maine’s average home sale price is only slightly less than the national average. The national median sale price was $410,900 in November, up 4.8%, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Sales in the Northeast jumped 6.3% and the median price was up 9.9% over November 2023, to $475,500. In the U.S., sales increased 7.4% over last year.

Units sold in Maine from January through November are 4.1% ahead of the same period a year ago, McKee said. “I’m optimistic that 2024 will end positively and buyer demand will continue to remain strong throughout 2025,” McKee said.

Maine’s housing market, with a 3.2-month supply, is a seller’s market, McKee said. A supply of five months or less is a seller’s market, and a buyer’s market is one with a seven-month supply, he said. A housing supply of six months benefits the buyer and seller, requiring more negotiation, he said.

Home sales could be challenged by higher mortgage rates that ticked up following the announcement Wednesday by the Federal Reserve that fewer interest rate cuts are anticipated next year. The central bank cut the interest rate by a quarter percentage point.