Real estate sales remained sharply down across Langley and the Fraser Valley in February, statistics from local realtors show.

In February, there were 913 sales of all types of homes from North Delta to Abbotsford and Mission, according to the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB).

That's down from 1,269 in the same month in 2012, a 28.1 per cent decline.

The average price of a home across the region dropped by 4.8 per cent year to year, to $471,767 from $495,345.

The total number of sales from the first two months of the year is down 26 per cent, and while listings have declined as well, they are only down by 6.7 per cent.

In Langley, sales were down for detached homes and townhouses in February, but up somewhat for condos.

There were 76 sales of detached single-family homes in February, down from 116 last year, a 34.5 per cent decline.

For townhouses, 29 sold last month, down from 52, a 44 per cent decline.

The bright spot was condo sales, in which 41 units sold in Langley, up from 37 in the same month last year, a 10.8 per cent increase.

Sales of all types of homes are relatively slow in January and February, with home buyers expected to emerge with the spring weather.

January was also a month of low sales, and the numbers in February did climb significantly with more people signing for homes. The 913 sales were up from 617 in January.

The new president of the FVREB, Ron Todson, is guardedly optimistic.

"We're seeing signals that the stand-off between buyers and sellers over the last six months is coming to an end," Todson said.

He cited increased traffic seen at open houses, and homes selling faster than in January.

Active listings are down about 1.6 per cent compared to 2012.

While the FVREB says it's "bench-mark price" is holding steady or increasing, average prices are in decline across every category of housing.

The FVREB defines a benchmark price as the average price paid for an average home.

However, buyers are staying away from high-end homes in droves.

The FVREB's benchmark went from $537,200 in February 2012 to $540,900 last month, a 0.7 per cent increase.

Over the same time, the average home price dropped from $610,645 to $587,492.

In Langley, the benchmark price for a single-family home went up 1.4 per cent to $541,600 over a year, while the average price slipped 0.5 per cent to $558,452.

The benchmark and average price for a townhouse declined, with the benchmark dropping to $286,700 from $296,100, 3.2 per cent, while the average dropped to $321,453 from $343,770, down 6.5 per cent.

The benchmark price of a condo went up 3.3 per cent, to $213,400 from $206,600, while the average dropped to below the benchmark, at $204,666 from $224,528, an 8.8 per cent reduction.

mclaxton@langleyadvance.com