By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Alabaster is on track to surpass its 2013 number of new homes this year, and city leaders said they are continuing to see the strongest housing market since 2008.

In September, the city’s Building Services Department issued six new home building permits valued at more than $1.5 million, bringing Alabaster’s number to 57 at the end of September. During the same period in 2013, the city had only issued 45 new home building permits.

Alabaster issued a total of 61 new home building permits in 2013, meaning the city must see only four more new home starts in October, November and December to match the 2013 year-end total.

The city issued a total of 59 new home permits in 2012, 30 permits in 2011 and 29 in 2010. Alabaster’s number of residential housing permits took a nosedive after the nationwide economic downturn hit in 2008. Alabaster went from a high of 354 new housing permits in 2004 before ending the year with 100 in 2008 and 48 in 2009.