As the Dow Jones plummets and unemployment hits the roof, economic issues run deep in northeastern Ohio.

Signs offering real estate for sale are rampant in Ashtabula County while newspaper headlines regularly announce the difficult challenges facing area businesses and families.

There are amid the chaos a few bright spots as some area builders report busy schedules and real estate agents talk of a positive new trend.

“The economy has not affected us at all,” said Roman Vencill of CBC Construction.

He said the company builds about nine homes a year and specializes in quality home construction.

Vencill said he feels the firm has been blessed by God and attempts to meet the customer’s needs.

Vencill said his customers tend to be almost completely area residents who are seeking to build their own homes.

“It’s people who have lived in Ashtabula county for 15 to 20 years and have lived in their family house and are looking to move up,” Vencill said.

Vencill said his company gets a lot of business from referrals. He said they are presently building a referral home in Madison, which is the developer’s first outside the county.

Mareddy Estates, a high-end development in Ashtabula, has seen business pick up since a lawsuit was recently settled regarding tax abatement in the city, said developer Brett Cimorell.

He said the lawsuit, filed by the Ashtabula Area City Schools, had hurt business because people did not know whether they would receive the full seven-year tax abatement.

Cimorell said out-of-town residents are especially excited about the lot size, at least an acre, at Mareddy Estates.

“They (Lake and Geauga county residents) see an acre and they lose it,” he said.

Rick Gleason, owner of Gleason Realty in Conneaut, said things are slow and have been getting worse recently.

“Right now we are at a standstill because of the credit crunch,” Gleason said.

He said the ongoing foreclosure program has also artificially reduced the real estate market.

Gleason said a new home worth $250,000 in 2007 recently sold at an auction for about $150,000.

“Nobody knows what is going on. Do we stay where we are and hunker down or do we try and make a new (purchase)?” Gleason said of people’s attitudes regarding purchasing a new home.

Gleason said a small positive trend has been people from the Youngstown, Columbus and Pittsburgh areas purchasing lakefront property.

“They have the money and in Conneaut and Ashtabula they can get a lot more for their money,” Gleason said.

He said many people marvel at the quaint nature of area communities and are happy the development is not as rampant as in other areas.

Gleason said he would like to see area chambers of commerce and niche tourism organizations work together on major marketing plans.

Another small trend that has developed is the purchase of lakefront properties in Ashtabula as summer homes for those living in the Deep South.

Ward Bennett, owner of Harbor Realty, said the area’s low cost of housing has opened up the market for people from outside the area.

Bennett said it could be a time where out-of-town residents become a part of the experience.

“I foresee we will get discovered by the golf and the fishing (crowd). I feel that is one of the positive things that could expand,” he said.

Bennett said the bottom line, however, is new jobs are needed in Ashtabula so people are able to purchase the available housing stock.

A Madison-based log cabin construction company said their business has been going well.

“It’s really quite busy for us at this point in the game,” said Staysie Chapman, owner of Hidden Valley Log Homes.

She said they build log cabin residences from small ranch homes to 5,500-square-foot structures in four weeks to three months.