BUTLER TWP — While fewer homes are being built overall in the township, there has been a tremendous growth in the amount of high-value homes that are being built.

John Stokes, the township zoning officer, said that during the past five years, homes valued at more than $250,000 are being built more than the rest of the market.

"Lots of houses built are the high-end ones," said Stokes. "I did one month where the average value of a home was $400,000."

At the same time, sales of mid-range homes, which include the market of $150,000-$250,000 homes, are struggling.

"They're building out at a slower rate than the expensive ones," said Stokes. "I don't have a handle on why that is."

The sales of homes below $150,000 have remained fairly constant during this time.

Using a 20-year time frame, Stokes said during the early 1990s, the township was building 50 to 75 houses per year.

Construction has slowed since then, where 2003 had 44 building permits for houses, 2004 had 34, and only 27 in 2005.

Stokes said this doesn't mean that the housing market is generating less money.

Lisa Protzman, of National City Mortgage in Butler, said she recently has processed few contracts below $300,000. She said the total contract for building most of the houses she has seen is between $450,000 to $550,000.

Several high-end housing developments have sprung up in the township in the past five to 10 years.

This past December, Wyncrest Development was given approval to build 47 homes on the hillside near the Greenwood Village Volunteer Fire Department.

"In Butler Township, a 47-lot is as big as you can get," said Stokes.

Wyncrest Development officials declined to comment on what they had planned for the site or when groundbreaking would begin.

Additional high-end developments include a lot called Sugar Creek on Dutchtown Road, which Stokes estimated, has about 40 houses. There the bottom-end houses sell for $400,000, said Stokes.

The Heartland Estates on Eberhart Road has built close to 50 houses at a price minimum of $300,000.

The Afton development, Meridian Road, is less than 2 years old and has 14 lots laid where the cheapest house is going for $475,000.

One possible reason behind the recent boom in high-end housing is the township has a tendency to react slower to shifts in the national market, good or bad.

"This area is always out of sync with the economy," said Stokes.

Protzman said the climate of mortgages with low interest rates — two years ago they had reached a 45-year low — is ripe for home building.

In creating locations for new buildings, 58 new building lots were created in the township this past year; six in 2004; 119 in 2003; 55 in 2002; and 21 in 2001, according to the township planning office.

The numbers include both commercial and residential lots.

Stokes said the township is handling about 300 new dwelling units in a 10-year period. That includes apartments, condominiums, duplexes and houses.

In particular, condominiums are another lucrative market for high-end development.

"With condos, even the bottom-end is going for $160,000 to $170,000," said Stokes.

He said there is one on Benbrook Road called the Fairways at Krendale, which is one-third completed, selling condos for $200,000.