Home building is showing one sign of vitality that has been missing recently: In June, the Building Industry Association of Stark County will hold its first Parade of Homes since 2010.
“We used to do a Parade of Homes every year, like most associations do,” said Joseph Race, association executive director. “But obviously the times that befell our industry the past few years didn’t make it possible.”
Six houses will be shown in the Fairways at Rolling Green, located between Rolling Green Golf Course and Strausser Elementary in Jackson Township.
Homes in the development are priced from $275,000 to $425,000 with lots in the $60,000 range, according to their real estate sales listing.
The price tag for the houses is in line with the view from the Stark County Building Department, where interim chief building official George Kent has seen a steady level of house-building permits of about 300 a year for the past three years.
“It seems to be that there are more high-dollar homes than in the past,” he said.
Kent said he also has seen continuous building by Ryan Homes, which operates throughout Ohio producing lower-cost residences.
“These are all sold before they begin construction,” Kent said.
He said he no longer sees builders who construct homes on the speculation that buyers would be available when the work is finished.
“Those folks aren’t with us anymore,” Kent said.
Stark County’s largest city, Canton, has yet to see increased home building.
“We did see a significant pick up commercially, but not residentially,” Angela Cavanaugh, chief building official for the city, said.
She was uncertain whether the improvement seen in 2012 was due to overall economic conditions or the increase in oil and gas exploration from hydraulic fracturing.
The show is scheduled for June 15-23.
Nancy Molnar can be reached at nancymolnar2002@ yahoo.com.
