Despite an appreciation in home prices in the first half of 2012, list prices actually declined in recent months and a growing number of housing markets are actually reporting year-over-year list declines, Realtor.com reported.

The supply of housing declined steadily throughout the year, and the number of properties on the market in December dropped nearly 50% below levels experienced at the height of the housing collapse.

“These potentially off-setting trends suggest that house price appreciation in the upcoming year is likely to be more moderate than it was in 2012,” Realtor.com said.

Nationally, the total number of single-family homes, condos and townhomes for sale in the U.S. fell 17.32% year-over-year, with approximately 1.5 million units for sale in December.

However, despite the significant gains occurring in early 2012, the median list price in December was essentially unchanged from a year ago at $187,900.

Properties spent less time on the market with demand increasing in December. The median age of December inventory listings dropped 9.01% from a year earlier.

Click on the two tables below to compare the 10 MSAs with the largest annual list price increase for December 2011 and December 2012.