New construction in Whitefish seems to

be recovering, while home sales in the county appear to have taken

a dip.

Through September the city recorded 33

new building permits for single-family residences, according to

Planning Director Dave Taylor.

In 2010 the city recorded 21

single-family home permits and in 2009 14 residential units. These

numbers compare with years like 2005 when the city saw 292 permits.

In addition, three commercial building permits have been filed so

far this year.

“We definitely had a dip, but I think

it’s picking up,” Taylor said. “I was pretty surprised at the

numbers, but it looks like we’ve picked up since the last two

years.”

The planning department could still see

more permits issued before the year’s end. Traditionally, Taylor

said, September and October are his department’s busiest months as

contractors make a last push to pour concrete before winter.

Whitefish’s building permits are

running ahead of Columbia Falls and holding with Kalispell permits

for the year. Columbia Falls has recorded four single-family

permits so far for the year. Kalispell issued 34 house permits and

eight townhouse permits.

Taylor believes Whitefish’s increase in

building has to do with second home construction and Canadians

taking advantage of lower building prices. There seems to be return

of higher end homes being built in areas like Iron Horse and Grouse

Mountain, but spec home building continues to be slow.

“There is a change from the attitude of

‘If they build it, they will come,’” he said.

Building permits, for repairs or

additions to existing homes, for May through September totaled 40.

The number follows a trend of an increase in remodels in the past

few years.

“In the last couple of years, when we

saw new homes dip, we also saw remodels go up,” Taylor said.

“Instead of purchasing or building a new home a lot of people

decided to keep their home and remodel. We’ve seen a lot of growth

in that area.”

Further proof of an increase in

activity is the Whitefish City-County Planning Board agenda for

this Thursday’s meeting. The board is holding public hearings on

several requests.

The meeting is one of the busiest the

board has held all year, according to Taylor.

One is a request for a re-zone and

preliminary plat for a two-lot subdivision at 217 Margaret Court.

Another hearing will look at a request by Scott and Cari Elden for

a conditional use permit to operate a bed and breakfast on O’Brien

Avenue. Two requests seek separate conditional use permits for a

guesthouse on West Third Street and an accessory apartment on

Highway 40.

Despite a resurgence in home

construction in Whitefish, homes sales in the county appear to have

taken a slight dip.

Home sales in Flathead County fell

during the first nine months of the year, according to a report

from Kelley Appraisal of Kalispell.

Overall residential sales in the county

from January through September are down 1.4 percent over last year

for the same period. The number of homes sold was 777 so far this

year compared with 788 in 2010.

However, sales in 2010 for the period

were up over the same time period for the three previous years.

The Kelley report also included

foreclosure data from the Flathead County courthouse. Notices of

trustee’s sale, which must be recorded 120 days prior to an actual

trustee’s sale, have increased every year from 2005 through 2010

for January through September. However, from January to September

this year the number of notices is down 34.4 percent.

The report shows the number of actual

trustee sales foreclosures as up so far for the year at an 11.8

percent increase. In the first nine months of the year the number

of foreclosed homes in the county has ranged from 26 in February to

54 in July.