Recently released data indicates that Pitt County home sales are on the rise, and local real estate officials say lower interest rates and a tax credit program for first-time buyers are big reasons.Bertha Pyne, president of the Greenville Pitt Association of Realtors, said there were 127 closings in the county last month, up from 99 during the same period the year before and 118 in 2007. Forty-nine of those homes were sold in Greenville, 42 were in the Winterville area, and the remaining 36 were scattered throughout the county, Pyne said.The September sales capped a six-month period in which overall home sales increased to 949 homes sold compared to 572 sold during the previous six months, according to Pitt County MLS data.Sales volume remains down 30 percent overall from last year, statistics show, but the recent uptick in sales offers a glimmer of hope to a market that has been struggling since a collapse last summer."We have had more sales, and I believe it is because the financing is so great," Pyne, broker in charge at Selective Homes Inc., said. "You have the best rates we have had in ages. That is playing a big role in it right now."Brandy Lee, mortgage loan officer with First South Bank, said rates for 30-year home loans are at 4.75 percent, and a 15-year rate is at 4.25 percent."I definitely feel the lower interest rates have stimulated the market and made everybody want to get off of that fence whether it be refinancing or purchasing," Lee said.

A government-sponsored tax credit program also has played a role in improving the numbers, Lee said. First-time home buyers getting the credit are allowed to reduce their federal income taxes by 10 percent of the price of a home up to $8,000.By the end of November, the credit will have been used by 1.8 million home buyers, at least 355,000 of whom would not have bought a house without it, according to estimates by the National Association of Realtors.Lee said she has noticed the impact of the tax credit program, saying about 50 percent of her business lately has been from first-time buyers.While some have speculated that the market will see another dip if government allows the tax credit to expire Dec. 1 as planned, Lee says she expects rates to remain low and sales to benefit."The government has really set aside money to invest in the mortgage-backed securities which is in turn what determines our interest rates," Lee said. "I think they will do their best to keep them low for at least the next year or so."There were 1,510 active listings in Pitt County at the end of September.Prices decline In addition to lower rates, buyers in today's market are also finding lower prices. MLS statistics reveal that the average sales price for homes in Pitt County has dropped during the past year by nearly $7,000 to $148,491. Those results are consistent with the rest of the nation based on statistics provided by Fiserv, a financial information and analysis firm. Fiserv has predicted that home values will drop in 342 out of 381 markets during the next year. The firm says prices should stabilize at that time. Pyne says the decrease is nothing to be alarmed about, noting that Pitt County home value trends compare well with other markets in terms of their depreciation. "I don't foresee Greenville having a huge depreciation because we have some employment opportunities with the hospital and university and places like that," Pyne said. "We are still doing really well compared with everybody else.
"More members Pyne says the recent activity in the market also is attracting more brokers after many left the field late last year. There are 476 members of the Greenville Pitt Realtors Association due to a steady increase in membership during the past couple of months, Pyne said. Membership remains down compared to the 547 members the association had last August when some agents left to find an alternative means of making money, Pyne said. "Some folks might be seeing some of the positive signs we are seeing, and that might be bringing them in," Pyne said. "We have new agents joining again, and that is a good thing."

By Brock Letchworth
The Daily Reflector

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