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The median price of a resale home last month reached its lowest level since June 2005 as sellers continued to cut prices in a cooling market.

A previously owned median-priced home cost $200,000, according to statistics released this week by Tucson housing consultant John Strobeck. The price represents a 2.4 percent decrease from the $205,000 median sale price in September 2005. It's the first time this year that the monthly median price was less than in 2005.

"The resale market increased in price dramatically in 2005, much more dramatically than new construction in 2005," Strobeck said.

In a frenzied market, sellers commanded top dollar because there were plenty of buyers. But as the market has cooled, sellers have to be more flexible in price as they try to make a sale.

"We're seeing people dropping their prices in retail and getting back to what was normal," Strobeck said. "We're falling back to normality."

The median price of a new home was $256,645, a 12.5 percent increase over the $228,035 sale price in September 2005 and less than 1 percent down from $258,500 in August.

Not all the news is bad, said Paul Olson, president of the Tucson Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Although not yet released, MLS numbers for September will show a decline in the number of new homes listed for sale, Olson said. The figures will be released this week.

"I think it's a positive thing for sellers, because they're having a hard time right now with the inventory," Olson said. "Right now they have so much competition with 9,600 listings that they're waiting a lot."