While Kitchener-Waterloo just finished up its busiest January for residential real estate sales since 2010, Cambridge saw things move in a different direction.

The Cambridge Association of Realtors says that 159 residential properties sold through its system last month. That number represents a 12.6 per cent decrease from January 2016.

Realtors’ association president Jim Robinson says the decrease doesn’t necessarily mean less demand for housing in Cambridge, but more likely reflects the low number of homes being put up for sale.

“With so few homes available for purchase right now, any decline in new listings was almost guaranteed to cause a drop in sales,” Robinson said in a media release.

The drop in sales also meant a sharp increase in sale prices, as homebuyers looked to outbid each other to get their hands on one of the relatively few properties to hit the market.

The average sale price in January was $343,473 – an increase of more than 18 per cent over January.