Home sales dropped slightly, median sale prices rose slightly and Central Virginia’s real estate market appeared to level off in 2010, according to the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors’ year-end report.

The CAAR report shows home sales soared early in the first quarter, sparked by an $8,000 federal tax credit for homebuyers. Sales then dropped off in the second quarter and evened out in the third and fourth.

Officials said the 2010 sales performance is a reversal of 2009’s.

“2010 started fast and then slowed down and 2009 started slow and finished fast,” said Greg Slater, of Better Homes and Gardens/Real Estate III and out-going CAAR president. “I don’t think people can argue that the tax credit did not have an impact. It obviously did.”

Purchases of condominiums and townhomes — called attached homes — were down year-to-year and sales of new homes listed with agents also were down. Sales of detached homes — single-family homes — were up.

According to the report, six months into 2010 overall home sales were up nearly 20 percent but finished the year 1.5 percent lower than 2009 at 2,707 units sold compared with 2,749.

While the number of sales finished slightly off mark, median home prices remained steady during the second half of the year and finished at $248,000, slightly ahead of 2009’s $245,00. The median price is the mid-point price of all homes sold, with an equal number of homes sold for more as sold for less.

There were also fewer houses on the market at the end of 2010 compared with 2009, with 2,721 homes as opposed to December 2009’s 2,877.

As the sales figures stabilized in the last two quarters of 2010, the same is true of the number of days the homes were on the market. The average days a home was up for sale was 117 in 2010 compared with 120 in 2009 and 119 in 2008.

The combination of days on the market, median prices, homes for sale and sales figures are hopeful signs, according to the report.

“At year end, inventory is down and prices are stable for two consecutive quarters, signaling what could be a positive trend for the Charlottesville market,” the report states.

CAAR officials agree.

“I’m looking at 2010 as two quarters in a row of stability,” said Barbara McMurry, of Montague, Miller and Co. Realtors and CAAR’s 2011 president. “Given that there’s not a lot of movement in the prices, it could be a signal that the market is stabilizing.”

The report does warn that homes in the real estate market’s shadow inventory — owned by banks but not on the market or homes that are in danger of foreclosure — could have unexpected effects.

“If we see inventory levels continue to decline and the pace of foreclosures stays steady, we can expect prices to begin a gradual rise,” the report states. “If inventory climbs again and the regional economy and loan availability both remain stagnant, there is limited opportunity for growth in our housing sectors.”

Officials admit that nothing is for sure.

“It’s totally impossible to tell for sure because we don’t know what’s going to happen with the inventory that’s in the shadows,” Slater said. “It’s absolutely wait-and-see.”