Grant County Festival of Homes deemed a success

GRANT COUNTY — More than 125 people toured homes during the Grant County Festival of Homes event Saturday.

The event continued through Sunday.

“It’s pretty inspiring,” said Katherine Morgan, marketing and events director for the Grant County Home Builders Association. “It’s really the shot in the arm our industry needs right now.”

She said the event far exceeded her expectations of how many interested people would tour the homes.

During the weekend event, 10 homes sprawled throughout Moses Lake and Ephrata were on display in various neighborhoods. Some homes were for sale while others were on display to show off craftsmanship.

The event also served as a time for people to meet with realtors and the builders.

The price range on the homes varies from about $179,000 to roughly $750,000, said Morgan.

“They all had a special ‘wow’ to everyone,” she said.

Although some homes were not for sale, it was a chance for builders to show off their craftsmanship and discuss building the home of someone’s dreams during the tour, she said.

Morgan explained Grant County remains an area for people to build homes.

“It’s different down here,” she said about the market. “It’s a great place to live, a great place to work and a great place for family.”

The event served as an appropriate time for builders and realtors to get there names known to the public, said Bruce Preston, president of the home builders association.

“We had a surprisingly great turnout,” he said.

The crowd touring the homes was promising because they appeared serious about either purchasing homes or doing remodel work, Preston said.

“It was very positive,” he said. “It was good for the community.”

The event was the first of it’s kind for Grant County and based upon its popularity, they will do it again next year, Preston said.

After the tours concluded Saturday, several of the sponsors gathered for dinner at Papa’s Casino in Moses Lake to discuss the success of the event.

During dinner, Wade Gardner, with Pro-Build, was given a certificate of appreciation for being a primary sponsor of the event.

“I feel a tremendous amount of pride with this program we’ve put on,” he said.

Gardner explained he believed the event benefits the community and looks forward to the event next year.

Other sponsors include Columbia Basin Herald, Columbia Glass, E&E Insulation East, Hanson Specialties, JRCC and Skaug Brothers Carpet One. M&M Heating sponsored the dinner.

Morgan said without the help of the sponsors, the festival would not have happened.