Amanda Parmer is optimistic about the impact of the Federal Reserve’s half-point interest rate cut this week.

Parmer, president of Cape Fear Realtors, said Thursday that mortgage rates are expected to go down as a result of the Fed’s action, after already dropping the previous month.

“The mortgage lenders can respond in kind, and we may see an uptick in buyer activity,” said Parmer, who is also president of Wilmington-based BlueCoast Realty Corp.

As of Thursday morning, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate stood at 6.17%, according to Bankrate.com.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, wrote in a statement Wednesday that the rate cut, the first in four years, is the beginning of six to eight rounds of further rate cuts that will take place “well into 2025.”

“The very next cut will occur after the presidential election. The justification is cooling inflation in recent months and lighter job gains. Mortgage rates have already anticipated the Fed’s likely path. That is why the 30-year rate has fallen by 150 basis points from early in the year to today,” he wrote.

Yun said a further decline in mortgage rates will be minimal. But more people will be able to afford to buy.

“Due to the already low mortgage rates compared to spring, the purchasing power for home buyers has been lifted by around $50,000 for those with a $2,000 monthly mortgage payment budget,” Yun stated.  “Consumers who were priced out due to earlier higher mortgage rates could now be back in the market.”

In recent years, officials in the Wilmington area have been looking at the need for affordable housing. According to a recent local study, more than 50% of renters are housing cost-burdened, meaning they are paying more than 30% of their income on their housing needs.

Parmer said home sales typically start slowing down in the region in in the fall. 

“In New Hanover County, our active listings are up 46% from where they were this time last year,” she said, “so it’s encouraging to think that with this drop, the buyers might get off the fence or may be able to have a little more room in their affordability with the rate drop.”