Home sales dropped sharply in September compared to August, ending a slow summer season with an even slower month, according to data released by the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors.

Sales of single-family detached properties were down nearly 23% in September compared to August, according to the data, which SDAR compiles through the San Diego Multiple Listing Service.

Additionally, attached properties such as condominiums and townhomes fell by 20% from the previous month. Year-over-year, total sales of previously owned homes in the county were down 28% from September of 2022.

"As long as construction of new homes and neighborhoods remains consistently slow, the housing affordability crisis will continue to persist," said SDAR President Frank Powell. "The rise in interest rates from 3% to over 7% has caused people to sell their properties more slowly because of the record rates.

"Unless the interest rates drop to around 5.5%, we will continue to see a slow market with historically low inventory," he said. "Speculation is a gamble, and no one can tell you what the interest rates will do."

Despite slow sales, median prices only dipped slightly last month, with single-family homes prices landing at $999,000, and condos/townhomes at $660,000, according to a SDAR statement. Prices remained 10% higher than September of last year, and for the first nine months of 2023, resale home prices were up slightly from 2022.

The amount of time that homes remained on the market until close of escrow averaged only 25 days last month.

Zip codes with most single-family home sales in San Diego:

In September, the ZIP codes in San Diego County with the most single- family home sales were:

92128: Rancho Bernardo East, with 32;

92057: Oceanside North, with 27;

92028 and 92114: Fallbrook and Encanto, both with 26;

92082: Valley Center, with 25; and

92056 and 92065: Oceanside East and Ramona, both with 23.