ROCKFORD (WREX) -
December was the slowest month on record for new homes in Winnebago County.
According to the Home Builders Association of the Greater Rockford Area, no new home permits were given in Winnebago County in December of 2011. That marks the first time that has happened since the group began keeping data in 1984.
Builders started 90 houses in Boone and Winnebago counties in 2011, down from 182 in 2010. The all-time high was 1,865 in 2004.