Home construction in Washington County has picked up, according to Ed Raber, Director of Washington Economic Development Group, WEDG. In the past five years home construction in Washington County slowed, following a decade of high number of new home permits between 1995 and 2005. In that decade, Washington had at least 23 new home building permits, nearly the same number in Kalona and frequently over 100 in the unincorporated area of the county. However, in 2012 only three permits were issued in Washington and six in Kalona. This year, the subdivision of Oakwood Village in Washington was opened and nine of the 20 lots have been sold with homes under construction. The City of Washington used Tax Increment Financing to assist with the infrastructure installation in the area.