Maui condominium sales rose in August for a second straight month, but a dramatic shift in where on the Valley Isle the units were sold contributed to a dive in the median sales price.

There were 62 condo sales last month, up 22 percent from 51 in the same month last year, according to the Realtors Association of Maui.

The median price plummeted by 46 percent to $340,000 from $625,000 in the same period. The median last month was the lowest all year. The last time it was lower was April 2005 at $329,500.

Median prices by submarkets on Maui were down nearly everywhere, but the big impact to the overall median was largely due to sales in the resort area of Wailea-Makena. There was only one sale there last month for $2.15 million compared with 17 sales for a median $2.35 million a year earlier.

The median is a point at which half the sales are for more and half for less, so a dramatic change in the mix of sales tends to skew the figure in a relatively small sample size.

The skewing for August condo sales was represented by far fewer high-end condo sales and more lower-priced condo sales in other parts of the island.

At the lower end of the market, the number of condo sales in Kihei surged to 27 last month from 15 a year earlier. The median was down to $325,000 from $380,000.

The next largest condo submarket was Central Maui where there were eight sales for a median $137,450 last month compared with three sales a year earlier for a median $280,000.

Single-family home sales on Maui were down 21 percent to 52 last month from 66 a year earlier. The median price was down 22 percent to $500,000 from $645,000.