Jamie Myers, president of Regency, told 103 people working at Regency Homes offices in West Des Moines and Cedar Rapids on Friday afternoon that their jobs had been eliminated and that construction would halt. Myers didn’t rule out a bankruptcy for the company, which concentrates in the Ames, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines and Iowa City areas. Regency closed the sale of 958 homes in 2005, its best year But the company has struggled for months, and predicted in January that sales would fall to 550 homes this year. Some homes are being financed by Regency and its 30 lenders, while others are being built by the company on behalf of individual clients. Regency’s Myers said lenders, who typically financed a portion of the homes the company was building, “are not wanting to take any more risk. Moffitt and two sons of Michael Myers, Jamie and Robbie Myers, own the company that builds everything from $120,000 town homes in the suburbs to $681,000 executive homes in West Des Moines. read more

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