Maui's housing market was soft in March as sales were down from a year earlier and median prices were relatively weak for existing single-family homes and condominiums.

Single-family home resales were down 27 percent to 95 last month, compared with 131 in March 2007, according to the Realtors Association of Maui.

The median single-family home sale price was down 1 percent to $620,000 last month from $625,000 a year earlier.

It's also taking longer to sell property, as homes spent an average 162 days listed for sale before selling last month, down from 150 days a year ago.

Condo resales were down 3 percent to 92 last month from 95 a year earlier.

Like single-family homes, condos sold last month spent longer on the market — 176 days on average, up from 152 days a year earlier.

The median condo sale price in March was $538,500. That was actually up 15 percent from $469,500 a year earlier, but was the lowest monthly median since $510,000 in July 2007.

Also, the March 2007 median price was a low for all of last year, and hadn't been lower in any previous month since February 2006.

The median condo price for all of 2007 was $550,000, which marked an annual high.

However, condo prices this year are on pace to set a new record despite the relatively low median in March. The median price for the first quarter was $587,000 compared with $552,500 for the same three months last year.

Still, it's difficult to predict median prices because Maui's relatively few sales each month tend to make median prices volatile.

The median is a point at which half the sales are for more and half for less.