The number of single-family houses sold in Rhode Island in May showed a small increase from the same month a year ago, but prices remained sharply lower, according to figures made public Monday by the Rhode Island Association of Realtors.

Condominiums and multi-unit houses saw even sharper price drops during the same period.

In May 2009, 666 single-family houses were sold, a 2.2 percent increase from the 652 sold in May 2008. For the same time period, the median sales price fell 24.8 percent, from $252,500 to $190,000.

The percentage of distressed sales fell in May when compared with April. In April, 42 percent of the 529 houses sold were considered distressed, meaning they were sold through foreclosure or as short sales, when a bank agrees to a sale for a price that is less than what is due on the mortgage. In May, 34 percent of the sales were distressed, according to the Realtors association.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” said Paul Leys, president of the Realtors association. “It’s a slow process but we seem to be better able to absorb foreclosures now.” He said that the number of foreclosures in Rhode Island is not expected to spike in the coming months due to the end of foreclosure moratoriums, as is the case in many other states.

For condominiums, the median sales price dropped 31.3 percent from $231,500 in May 2008 to $159,000 in May 2009. The number of units sold also dropped sharply, down 35.0 percent, from 140 in May 2008 to 91 in May 2009.

“Condos were the last to see the effects of the housing downturn and now they’re playing catch-up in the correction,” said Leys. “We’ve seen no particular price trend in recent months. They seem to be up one month and down the next. Condo statistics can skew widely on the success or failure of a handful of particular complexes.”

The steepest price drop was for multi-unit houses, which plunged 48.3 percent while the number sold shot up 46.2 percent. The median price went from $158,500 in May 2008 to $82,000 in May 2009. Sales increased at the same time from 119 to 172.

pparker@projo.com