Home buyers looking for good deals returned to the Nashville region’s real estate market in 2011, driving sales up but holding prices down.

“We noticed people were somewhat more realistic,” says Lawrence Lipman, owner of Lipman Group Sotheby’s International Realty in Nashville.

Value-conscious buyers were determined not to overpay, and many sellers responded with competitive prices, he says.

For the first time in six years, the number of homes sold increased over the previous year, data collected by Chandler Reports shows.

Throughout the multi-county region, there were 20,624 homes sold, a 1.8 percent increase over 2010 when there were 20,250 closings.

“2011 was a very important year for home sales,” says Kendra Cooke, president of the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors. “It is the first year since 2006 that there was an increase over the number of closings in the prior year.

“While the increase is small, it is a very encouraging sign. The year-over-year increase is most significant because in 2011 there were no stimulus or tax-credit incentives like those available in 2010.

In Davidson County, 9,336 homes were sold in 2011, 88 more than the 9,248 sales in 2010, Chandler Reports data reveal. The average home price rose slightly to $189,289. In 2010, the average price was $184,706.

The average price per square foot declined nearly 2 percent. In 2011 it was $105. The year before, it was $107.

“People are looking for value,” Fridrich & Clark Realtor Mike Gallagher says. “They’re understanding that real estate does not appreciate the way it did in 2004.”

Some neighborhoods were stronger than others. In the 37205 ZIP code, which includes Belle Meade and West End neighborhoods, the average home price rose more than 9 percent. In 2010, the average home sold for $433,621. Last year the price was $472,981, according to Chandler Reports.

In 37215, which includes Green Hills, the average price rose almost 8 percent in 2011 to $481,512. The previous year, the average price was $446,642.

In 37212, which includes the area surrounding Hillsboro Village, the average home price went down 4.5 percent to $329,415. In 2010, the average price was $344,800.

In Williamson County, sales rose more than 9 percent in 2011, but prices were almost unchanged. Last year 3,709 homes were sold. The prior year there were 3,393 sales. The 2011 average price was $368,691. In 2010 it was $369,978.

The average price per square foot was almost 7 percent lower. In 2011, buyers paid $121 per square foot. In 2010, they paid $130.

In southern Williamson County, along the I-65 corridor, sales and prices were strong in Spring Hill, where General Motors is creating 1,900 new jobs at its former Saturn factory. GM plans to turn the Spring Hill factory into a flex facility where it will build its top-selling Equinox crossover SUV and other vehicles as demand warrants. At currently announced staffing levels, the facility will have nearly 3,600 workers.

There were 400 home sales in Spring Hill in 2011 at an average price of $221,174. In 2010 there were 396 sales for an average of $216,592. The average price per square foot in 2011 was $88. In 2010 it was $91.

In Thompson’s Station, just off I-65 south of Franklin, sales increased more than 24 percent in 2011, when 215 houses changed hands. There were 173 sales in 2010. Prices, however, headed the other direction. The average price last year was $221,479. In 2010 it was $226,782. The average price per square foot declined 7 percent in 2011 to $93. In 2010 it was $100.

The housing market is taking “baby steps” toward a full recovery, says Mike Nichols, a Realtor with Zeitlin & Co,

“We felt we were busy” in 2011, he says, “hitting bottom and getting better. I think we’ve turned a corner.”