Housing construction continues to increase in Cherokee County, but the recovery is slow.

There were 66 single-family housing permits issued throughout the county in March, an increase from 48 in February and slightly better than the 62 permits issued in March last year.

So far this year, there have been 144 new permits issued in the county, ahead of last year's pace of 131 permits through the first three months.

Mike Shina, president of the Cherokee chapter of the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association, expects he will build more houses in 2010 than any other year in his career.

"In our niche market, we are starting to see a recovery," he said. His company, Windsong Properties, builds active adult communities.

He said starter homes and active adult homes are doing well, but the family buyer is still struggling.

"The family buyer is still strapped to their house," he said. "That is going to hurt the overall housing market in Cherokee County."

Jamey Cagle, president of Riverstone Homes in Canton, said his company has not started anything new this year. He said there is no profit right now for builders.

"Banks won't loan money. If you did build, the house won't appraise for as much as it cost to build," he said.

The county building department, which serves unincorporated Cherokee and Waleska, issued 32 new single-family permits last month, up from 17 in February and 21 in March last year.

So far this year, the county office has issued 59 new permits, up from 53 issued at this time last year.

County Commissioner Jim Hubbard said that with the amount of reduced sales and foreclosures on the market, seeing more new permits is a good sign.

"I believe things are starting to turn around," he said. "We knew it was going to be slow."

Woodstock's building department issued two new permits last month, down from five issued in February and 14 issued in March last year. This year, the city has issued 18 new permits, down from 27 issued at this time last year.

Canton's building department issued 12 new permits last month, down from 15 in February but up from none issued in March last year. The city has issued 34 new permits so far this year, up from six issued at this time last year.

Holly Springs issued 20 new permits last month, up from 11 issued in February and 16 in March last year. The city has issued 33 new permits through March this year, down slightly from 34 issued at this time last year.

Ball Ground and Nelson both have issued no new permits this year, the same as at this point last year.