Small Town Mannford Has Housing Boom

By Heather Hope, News 9

MANNFORD, Oklahoma -- Summer wildfires nearly burned the Creek County town of Mannford to the ground. Hundreds of homes burned in the blaze, and now, it's nearly impossible to find a place to live there.

While many places have houses waiting to be taken off the market, Mannford, instead, has a waiting list of people wanting to buy or rent property. The small lakeside town of Mannford has seen record growth, by more than 47 percent in the past 13 years.

But city officials say a downside to that growth is there aren't enough houses to support it. The town is still rebuilding after summer wildfires destroyed hundreds of homes. Now, there are nearly a handful of houses for sale and zero for rent.

"I think if another builder or some other developer wanted to come in and create some more buildings. I think it would be awesome because that's what people are asking us for," says Jerri Saliba, of Premium Real Estate.

Real estate brokers say Mannford is drawing a younger crowd and the big attraction is Keystone Lake. There is already development going on in the city, and once it is finished there will be about 450 boat slips and a restaurant on the lake.

The city has about 80 residential lots up for grabs at a reduced rate. Three national retailers and a fast-food chain are building in the town this summer because of the new marina.

About 130 new boat slips should be ready by lake season, and the rest of the development is to be completed by next summer.