Sable Homes listed a national ‘housing giant’ by Pro Builder

West Michigan’s Sable Homes has been named a 2020 “housing giant” by Pro Builder, a national housing industry publication that serves more than 120,000 home builders, design professionals, and other industry stakeholders.

With 90 single-family home closings in 2019, Pro Builder ranked Rockford-based Sable Homes No. 244 in its annual Housing Giants list. The listing provides a glance of builders’ perceived opportunities and challenge nationwide. Sable Homes has been consistently ranked on the Pro Builder Housing Giants list since 2016.

“It’s an honor to be recognized as a national housing giant by the industry’s leading publication for the fifth year in a row,” said John Bitely, president of Sable Homes. “As we closed out 2019 and headed into 2020, we were in a strong position for new home sales. And we still are – even when COVID-19 hit West Michigan earlier this spring. Our staff and construction crews are working harder than ever to build quality and fair homes to clients in metro Grand Rapids.”

In December 2019, national annual housing starts soared to 1.626 million units (seasonally adjusted), the highest it’s been since 2006. That trend continued into early 2020 with an increase of 21.4 percent from the previous year, and a permit increase, single- and- multifamily, of 9.2 percent to 1.551 million — the highest since March 2007, according to data by Pro Builder.

As COVID-19 swept through Michigan in February and March 2020, many businesses temporarily closed their doors and home builders briefly paused services. For Sable Homes, home sales progressed, despite their office being closed to the public.

“We sold 24 homes while Michigan remained under the governor’s real estate and construction ban from March through early May,” said Sales Manager Karin Kay. “We were already in a strong housing market to begin with when COVID-19 hit Michigan. But with low interest rates and a low housing inventory, houses were getting snatched up quickly.

“Home buyers who have been patiently waiting to purchase a home are now entertaining the idea of building a home because of the low inventory in West Michigan,” Kay added. “This is the perfect time to build a home in West Michigan.”