Little Custom Homes coming to Earle

Little Custom Homes coming to Earle

City signs deal with manufacturer for model home aimed at promoting growth in community

news@theeveningtimes.com

Earle has officially signed a contract with an Osceola prefabricated custom home builder to bring a model home to the city.

Mayor Sherman Smith and Little Custom Homes CEO Bill Joe Denton signed a one year renewable agreement that will let the company build a model home on a vacant city owned lot on Bailey Street.

Under the terms of the deal, Little Custom Homes will lease the lot from the city and be required to pay the city the appraised value for the lot in the event the home is sold, as well as any taxes owed to the county. If the company decides not to renew the agreement, they will be required to return the lot to its original condition.

Smith said he was excited about the deal and the prospect of building even more affordable housing in Earle.

Earle was hard hit by a tornado in 2008 and has struggled with population loss. Many residents never came back and much of the damaged homes were never rebuilt and are now overgrown or burned out shells.

“I’m looking forward to them bringing in a model some time in the next month,” Smith said. “We need more affordable housing in Earle and I think this is a good start. So this is good news.”

Little Custom Homes manufactures pre-built, affordable homes at a factory in Osceola. The company has built similar homes in nearby Keiser and Bassett which have resulted in an influx of new residents to those depressed delta communities.

The homes range from 720 square feet to 1,300 square feet, and sell for $60,000 for a one bedroom up to $100,000 for a four bedroom model.

The homes take 45 days to build and are transported to the building site, which in most cases, was a former overgrown or abandoned lot.

Turrell Mayor Dorothy Cooper, who acted as the liaison between Earle and Little Custom Homes, said she was overjoyed by the union of Little Custom Homes and Earle and sees great possibilities ahead not only for Earle, but other communities in need of cheap housing. “From its foundation, great possibilities are sure to be constructed,” Cooper said. “With new affordable housing also comes jobs, population growth, water revenue growth, even the possibility of jobs in the form of new businesses opening.”

Cooper thanked Mayor Smith for his patience in working through the details to make it happen.

“Without the concern for the City of Earle from him and the City Council none of this would be possible,” Cooper said. “What Little Custom Homes has to offer is definitely life changing for the better if entire communities. We have even more communities on our list to work with and I am extremely happy about it.”

By Mark Randall