McHenry County experiences home construction boom not seen in 20 years

McHenry County is seeing an increase in new home construction not seen since the early 2000s, including thousands of homes planned for Wonder Lake and hundreds in Huntley and Harvard, officials said.

“There is a demand in the county for housing,” said Adam Wallen, director of planning and development for McHenry County. “I chose to live here my whole life. It’s beautiful – the people, the scenery, access to everything.”

Wallen said that as county officials work through the 2050 comprehensive plan, they see housing “is a very, very big subject.”

“There are more people that live here but work in other counties,” he said. “Two out of every three people, if they live here, they work somewhere else such as Kane, Cook and Kendall counties. The struggle to find housing is apparent, whether a rental or a new single-family residence.”

Jim McConoughey, president of the McHenry County Economic Development Corp., said builders are choosing to build in the county because people “have identified this as a highly livable community.”

He cited good schools; shopping; and easy access to roads, trains and airports as attractive features to developers and homebuyers.

“You get open space, and you can travel 3 miles in three minutes instead of 3 miles in 30 minutes,” McConoughey said. “You have a bunch of services that are first-class services, and you can maintain your property value here. It is very predictable, and that makes people comfortable.”

He said that after people “suffered through the pandemic,” they decided they wanted to “live a bigger life, and this is the type of place that allows you to do that.”

Once almost all farmland, the county began booming with neighborhoods and commercial properties in the early 2000s. The county prepared for the expected growth, putting in roads, sewer, water and other infrastructure, as well as making school improvements.

In 2008, the recession hit, and new construction halted. However, in the past couple of years, the county has seen a consistent and positive move in the other direction, Wallen and McConoughey said.

In fact, McConoughey said, “This is highest growth period we have had ever in the region.”

McConoughey said that based on the number of certificate of occupancy permits issued in 2022, the county saw 2,500 new residences built. This includes single-family units, apartments, condominiums and senior living residences.

“This year, we are on track to do another 2,500 residences,” McConoughey said.

Based on those numbers, it is estimated the county’s population has grown by 8,000 new residents, McConoughey said.

This is highest growth period we have had ever in the region.”

—  Jim McConoughey, president of the McHenry County Economic Development Corp.

Wallen said that so far this year, based on permits issued, there are 21 new single-family homes expected to be built in unincorporated areas.

Based on an approximate evaluation of each home, those residences average about $450,000 each, totaling more than $9 million in new construction in unincorporated areas so far for 2023, Wallen said.

Last year, there were 43 permits issued for new, single-family homes in unincorporated areas, Wallen said.

McHenry County Board Chair Mike Buehler said the “surge” in new home construction serves as an “affirmation of the county’s exceptional qualities.”

“Our thriving job market, scenic open spaces – over 26,000 acres under McHenry County Conservation District management – exceptional educational opportunities for students and adults alike, a family-centric lifestyle, and a mix of urban and rural charm are some of the main reasons we’ve found that our residents choose to live here,” Buehler said.

Where’s the growth?

Within incorporated municipalities such as Wonder Lake there are 3,700 residences planned to be built on about 1,600 acres of farmland at Stonewater, a D.R. Horton development, said William Beith, village administrator.

Beith said that when he was just three weeks into his new job in 2001, D.R. Horton applied for 60 home permits. Since then, about 700 homes have been built in what is the first phase of the development.

Stonewater plans include nature paths, open space, an aquatic center, playground and the man-made Wonder Lake.

The development will offer 30 different neighborhoods and different home styles meeting different buyers’ needs, according to the developer’s website.

“We already started the engineering for the next phase and beyond,” Beith said.

Prices range from the mid-$200,000s for townhomes to the $300,000s for single-family homes, according to the developer’s website.

However, as the development progresses, the later phases will offer larger, more expensive homes on larger lots, Beith said.

Meadows of West Bay, also in Wonder Lake, being built by Lennar Homes, currently has 400 single-family homes complete or nearing completion, Beith said.

That development initially was being built by Newman Homes in the early 2000s. With about 20 homes completed, the work suddenly ended in 2008, Beith said.

“Then Lennar came in and said, ‘OK, the market changed’ and built it out,” Beith said, adding that he expects the final building permits to be issued in July.

Lennar Homes also has built and continues to build single-family, 55-and-older communities and townhomes in Crystal Lake.

In Harvard, the Turtle Crossing subdivision, which also started and stopped in the 2000s with about 60 homes built out of the more than 400 available lots, is seeing construction again, said Donovan Day, Harvard community development director.

Day said Harvard has been “pretty aggressive” to attract new builders by reducing and waiving fees if they agree to build a certain number of homes within a certain number of years.

Homes in Turtle Crossing range from $230,000 to $275,000. The plan calls for single-family homes and duplexes as well as some rental properties.

Day said Harvard being at the beginning of the Union Pacific Northwest Metra train line is attractive to those who commute for work.

He said with the new manufacturer taking over the former Motorola campus, there also is a need for housing for the more than 1,000 employees expected to work there.

In Huntley, Charles Nordman, village director of development services, said three national builders are developing properties there, bringing in an additional 661 residences.

M/I Homes is developing Fieldstone on 82 acres located south of Main Street and west of Haligus Road.

“They just started earth work a few weeks ago,” Nordman said, adding that they are installing utilities, water, sewer and road.

A model home is expected to be up by the end of the year.

Plans call for a neighborhood park, as well as 173 urban, farmhouse-style, single-family homes ranging from 1,700-square-foot ranches to 3,300-square-foot two-story homes.

Prices will start at $490,000, Nordman said.

Nordman said the development will offer three ranch floor plans in a response to people’s current desires.

“Every homebuilder now has a couple of options for single-story homes,” Nordman said. “It’s desirable now. The change in demographics no longer want the biggest home they can get, they want a home they can age in place in.”

D.R. Horton is building Unit Two at the Cider Grove subdivision in Huntley.

Last year, D.R. Horton completed about 45 of its planned 180 single-family homes. The development offers eight different plans of single- and two-story homes ranging from 1,970 square feet to more than 3,000 square feet. Prices start in the $400,000 range, Nordman said.

Talamore, which began development in 2005 in Huntley, also is seeing additional homes being built.

Currently, in what the Lennar Homes calls “pods,” site work is being done. In one pod, plans include 129 single-family homes with seven different floor plans ranging from 2,146 square feet to 3,247 square feet. Prices start in the high $400,000.

The other pod will consist of the Andare Product consisting of single-story homes ranging from 1,428 square feet to 2,000 square feet and targeting empty nesters, Nordman said.

The prices range from $350,000 to $470,000. This pod also will include 82 two-story townhomes ranging in price from $320,000 to $360,000.

“This is definitely the most [new construction] we have seen in many years,” Nordman said.