Another busy year for home purchases in Pueblo County lost some steam in the second half as higher prices and tight inventory slowed buyers, according to 2018 sales data released by local and state Realtors groups. The trend matches one reported in many communities in Colorado and the nation.

Still, home spending for all of 2018 finished up 6 percent from a strong 2017, fueled by heavier buying from January through July, the Pueblo Association of Realtors reported. Overall, an estimated $543.4 million was spent on home purchases last year, up from $512.7 million in 2017, the group said.

Last year's continued strengthening of the local market also was reflected in more sales of higher-priced homes. There were 270 sales of homes in the $300,000 to $400,000 range, up from 186 sales in 2017. In the $200,000 to $300,000 range, there were 899 sales, up from 808 sales in 2017.

The second-half cooling extended into December with unit sales down 7.9 percent last month compared to the prior year, according to Colorado Association of Realtors data. The supply of available homes remained tight at 2 percent. The median selling price of $182,500 was up 10.7 percent from December 2017.

Last year "was a good year for the Pueblo market!" David Anderson, president of the Pueblo Association of Realtors and an agent with RE/MAX Pueblo West, said in a statement released with the latest sales data.

Looking ahead, "Realtors are cautious for this year, suspecting that inventory will increase a little and prices will level off," he said. The increased inventory will come in part as local homebuilders continue to field more orders, he said. Home construction also slowed in recent months but builders are "still positive for 2019," he said.

The Pueblo Assocation Realtors' report shed more light on second-half dropoff. The combined dollar value of all single-family homes and townhomes sold in December was down 2.3 percent from a year earlier, the fifth straight month of a year-over-year decline, the local association reported.

Statewide, many other commnities also reported some cooling in their previously red-hot housing markets but it was "not universal across Colorado and is dependent on the neighborhood, down to the zip code, further reinforcing the narrative that all real estate is local," the state association said in its year-end report.

A recent decline in mortgage rates to a 12-month low should help spur more sales, the state association said.

"Coupled with dropping rates, affordability actually eased a bit in the later months of 2018. Statewide, December’s Affordability Index looked similar to that seen in early 2018," even as median prices continue to edge higher, the association said.

Nationally, U.S. home sales cratered in December, causing price growth to slip to the lowest level in more than six years as the housing sector ended 2018 on a decidedly weak note.

The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday that sales of existing homes plunged 6.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.99 million last month, the worst pace in almost three years. For all of 2018, sales of existing homes fell 3.1 percent from a year ago to 5.34 million units, the weakest total since 2015.

"Looking ahead to 2019, expect weaker existing-homes sales as the new year ushered in a government shutdown and worsening economic uncertainty," said Cheryl Young, a senior economist at Trulia.

Home sales have slowed after years of strong price growth and modest inventories hurt affordability. More properties are sitting on the market. The average day on the market increased to 46 from 40 days a year ago.

The median U.S. sales price in December was $253,600, up just 2.9 percent from last year. In a rarity, the modest price growth was eclipsed by the December increase in average hourly wages, easing some of the recent affordability pressures.

December's price gains were the worst since a decline was posted in 2012.

Sales last month fell in all four geographical regions: Northeast, Midwest, South and the West.

But there is a regional divide in price gains. The Northeast posted an 8.2 percent jump in median home prices, and the South enjoyed a 2.5 percent gain.

The partial U.S. government shutdown has yet to hit the housing market, although Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the Realtors, said it could hurt sales in upcoming months by 1 percent.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.