MIAMI (AP) -- October home sales in the U.S. South vaulted 23 percent from last year as buyers scrambled to grab an expiring tax credit and wrestled for lower-priced homes, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.

Real estate agents from Texas to Maryland credited sales increases to low mortgage rates, affordable prices and the tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time buyers. The incentive was set to die Nov. 30 before Congress extended it into next spring and added a $6,500 credit for current homeowners who move into another property.

Median sales prices in the South did fall to $151,100, a 6 percent decline from last October. Strong demand from first-time buyers in Florida and Washington D.C. led to some bidding wars over low-priced homes, including foreclosures, said Vicki Cox Golder, president of the Realtors group.

Nationally, October sales of existing homes were up by one-fifth compared with last year, without adjusting for seasonal factors. The median sales price dipped 7 percent to $173,100.

Re-sales of houses and condominiums increased in all 18 Southern metro markets covered by The Associated Press-Re/Max Housing Report, also released Monday.

Fourteen Southern markets saw prices fall on a year-over-year basis. Foreclosure-heavy Miami posted the steepest drop -- a 30 percent decline to $150,000. Little Rock, Ark., Birmingham, Ala., and Houston recorded price increases from October 2008, while New Orleans held steady, the AP-Re/Max report showed.

The AP-Re/Max report analyzed sales transactions in the metropolitan statistical areas recorded by all real estate agents, regardless of company affiliation.

While prices in Miami are down, sales rose 28 percent in October, compared with the same month last year. Miami's real estate market not only benefited from the tax credit, but also from Canadian and European buyers taking advantage of a relatively weak dollar and affordable prices.