FINDING A HOME: This Brannon Builders house in Southaven’s Central Park neighborhood awaits a buyer. -- PHOTO BY LANCE MURPHEY

DeSoto County’s housing market isn’t any different than the rest of the Mid-South or even the nation. Fewer homes are being sold as a result of the recession, and real estate professionals are coping with the slowdown as much as they can.

And like other areas – including Memphis, its immediate neighbor to the north – DeSoto has seen its outlook brighten as sales and pricing have increased during the past couple of months. Still, the county is well below the sales pace of the previous year, according to data from the Northwest Mississippi Association of Realtors.

DeSoto County notched 2,556 home sales between October 2008 and September, an 18.9 percent decline from 3,150 home sales during the previous 12-month period, according to NWMAR.

But the county saw a 12-month sales high in July with 270 homes sold, and August and September (whose sales numbers weren’t final by press time), both notched solid figures as the housing market revealed signs of bottoming out.

John Harrison, a broker at Pinnacle Real Estate and NWMAR president, credits the $8,000 first-time homebuyers tax credit as the chief catalyst for the recent improvement.

“Our general consensus at the board is that the market has started a recovery,” Harrison said. “The general sense that we get is the sales have been strongest in the houses of first-time homebuyers and people in the lower half of the market compared to the upper half of the market.”

DeSoto County remains attractive, as evidenced by its rising population. At last count, the county had more than 150,000 residents, almost triple its 1980 population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Most real estate agents said people are drawn to the county because of its school systems, low crime rate and affordable cost of living, including favorable property tax rates.

There’s no doubt DeSoto County is pulling in people by the droves, but as for where within the county they are moving, that’s a little less clear.

Corie Haynes, president-elect of NWMAR and an associate broker at Crye-Leike Realtors’ Hernando office, said the housing market has shown obvious signs of recovery, and while it’s hard to pinpoint one area, most of the county’s towns – Southaven, Olive Branch, Hernando and Horn Lake – are enjoying a positive influx.

“We’re seeing overall good activity,” Haynes said. “Over the last couple of years, as it has everywhere, we’ve seen a bit of a decline, but one good thing about DeSoto County is we just continue to be very active.”

C.F. Moore, managing broker for Crye-Leike’s Southaven office, said the pace has picked up so much in recent months that some of his agents are rehiring their assistants. He’s noticed an increase in traffic as potential buyers scramble to secure the first-time homebuyers tax credit.

“Southaven has always held its own. It’s the more mature market here,” Moore said. “But Olive Branch seems to be doing well. And there’s a lot of first-time homebuyers in Horn Lake, but that’s because of the price point there.”