Bucking a national trend, the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors said that 40,056 homes were closed in the metropolitan area during 2006, a 3 percent increase from the 38,874 closings reported for 2005. The annual sales figure represents the sixth consecutive year of record sales volume, and the first time the Nashville area has seen more than 40,000 closings in one year.

The median residential price for a single-family home in the area increased to $184,562, the association said, from last year’s median of $173,840. Condominiums also saw a rise in prices, going from $173,840 from a median value of $168,275 at the same time last year. Much of the annual growth was driven by strong sales activity earlier in the year, as fourth quarter sales activity was decidedly slower versus last year. Fourth quarter closings for Greather Nashville were reported at 9,307, down 2.6 percent from the 9,563 closings during the fourth quarter of 2005. There were 3,109 closings during the month of December, the association said, a 7.5 percent decrease from the 3,362 closings reported for the same period in 2005.