News

By Amy Riggin

Saturday, August 15, 2009 10:18 PM CDT

OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF

Members of the Pine Bluff Fire and Emergency Services along with EASI personal prepare to transport a gun shot victim at 1212 W. 17th Street to Jefferson Regional Medical Center Saturday afternoon in Pine Bluff. Pine Bluff Commercial/Ralph Fitzgerald

Jefferson County sold five more homes in June compared to the same month last year, the Arkansas Realtors Association reported Tuesday.

Real estate agents reported selling 37 homes valued at $3.9 million in June compared to 32 homes valued at $3.4 million in June 2008. Year-to-date sales were down 17 percent, from 218 to 181 homes sold.

The average price of new and residential units sold dropped to $105,807 from $107,408 in June 2008. But the year-to-date average price increased nearly 2 percent to $102,927.

Optimistic

Bill Ursery, real estate agent for Hometown Realty Services, is optimistic.

“Yeah, the market is slower but housing prices and values have remained steady and mortgage money is readily available,” he said, adding that first-time home buyers are eligible for a tax credit of up to $8,000 if they buy before Dec. 1. “I see sunlight in this market, as opposed to the doom and despair that has traditionally been talked about the last eight to 12 months.”

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, taxpayers can claim 10 percent of the purchase price up to $8,000.

“We have a lot of houses in Pine Bluff from $50,000 to $100,000,” Ursery said. “That [$5,000] means a lot to a man buying a $50,000 house — it’s real money that they’re going to have available to them.”

Lou Taylor, owner of Lou Taylor Realty and zone 11 director of the Realtors Association, said while the slight month-over-month increase is “a step in the right direction,” job creation and stability are key to rejuvenating the local housing market.

“While I think that little bit of an increase might be an indicator of just a little more confidence in the overall economy, in our area our whole thing is jobs,” Taylor said. “We’re flat here.”

He has noticed that people either aren’t getting the homes they want because they’re worried about job security — or they aren’t buying at all.

“Our area needs something immediately and it’s jobs,” Taylor said. “We’ve got a long way to go to really become a viable community in Arkansas. Jobs are going elsewhere and we’ve got to get educated to stimulate and stabilize our real estate market.”

He surmised that the increase in home sales in June could be attributed to “more often than not investors, people picking up bargains from rent houses and things like that.”

“Nobody’s going to stick their neck out on a 30-year loan when they don’t know if they’re going to have a job.”

Statewide, June home sales dropped 4.5 percent from the same month last year, while year-to-date sales dropped 14 percent. Average home prices fell nearly 7 percent to $149,532.

Arkansas County sold 12 homes in June, up from nine the same month last year; Ashley County sold four homes, down from 10; and Grant County sold seven compared to 16 last year.

Year-to-date, Arkansas County saw an increase from 47 to 57 homes; Ashley County saw a decline from 41 to 21 homes; and Grant County held steady at 62 homes.

Benton County led the decline among the state’s top markets in June with a 3.9-percent drop, followed by Washington County (3.3 percent) and Saline County (2.5 percent).

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