Brunswick County just had its second-strongest January in the last 10 years in residential sales volume, according to data from the Brunswick County Association of Realtors.

The total sales volume last month was $62 million, down 12 percent from January 2018, which was the highest January for sales volume in the last decade.

“Even though January is typically a slow month in the real estate business, last month was our second-strongest January in a decade,” Cynthia Walsh, Brunswick County Association of Realtors CEO, said in a news release Friday. “Additionally, our inventory of available homes continues to be tight, pointing to a competitive seller’s market as spring approaches. We look forward to a successful year in terms of growth and sales.”

There were 542 new listings in January, which was higher than the 496 listings in January 2018.

The number of units sold and average sales price in January decreased as compared to the same time last year.

There were 241 units sold in January, down 8 percent from January 2018 at 262. Average sales price in January of last year was $269,320, higher than last month’s $257,555.

The absorption rate, which measures how long it would take to sell the current inventory of homes, is at 4.5 months and continues to trend downward, while the average number of days on market is hovering in the three-month range, stated the release.

In Bladen County, the total sales volume for January was $715,800, up 34 percent from the same month last year. There was one fewer listings last month in the county than a year ago, but more units sold as compared to January 2018.

Average sales price in Bladen County decreased by 16 percent.

Columbus County had an increase in the number of units sold, average sales price and total sales volume in January as compared to last January.

Total sales volume increased 61 percent, from $1.4 million in January 2018 to $2.2 million last month. Average sales price in January was $135,375, a 40 percent increase from the same month last year.