The report by BUILDER Online lists the healthiest housing markets based on market projections. The report touts the Charlottesville area’s housing market is not big, but strong. It cites the presence of the University of Virginia and second-home buyers from Washington.

“Compared to some markets, we’ve got some pretty good things happening,” said Greg Slater, immediate past president of the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors. “There are segments of it that are doing very well.”

Slater said the region’s speculative inventory has largely been “eaten up.” In September 2006, there were 252 new homes for sale in Albemarle County, but in September 2011 there were 65, he said. There’s been a shift in demand from “upsizing” to “right-sizing,” he said.

In Albemarle, the number of building permits issued went from 203 in the first half of 2010 to 208 in the first half of this year. In Charlottesville the number rose from 209 to 211.

New home sales for the same periods went from 230 to 194 in the Charlottesville Multiple Listing Service. The MLS includes mainly data from Charlottesville and Albemarle, Fluvanna, Louisa, Nelson and Green counties.

“The least-expensive homes have been doing very well for the last couple of years,” said Doug Kingma, president of the Blue Ridge Home Builders Association.

Kingma said he thinks there’s also been an uptick in high-end homes of late.

That dovetailed with what Jim Duncan of Nest Realty, owner of realcentralva.com, reported. He has seen strong sales for low-priced homes, and strong performance from builders who are edging toward custom.

In part, he said, that’s a result of the market pushing out those developers who don’t go out of their way to cater to customers.

“The ones who are left standing are responding and reacting to the market in a very, very proactive way,” he said.

Popular features include energy efficiency and flexible floor plans, he said. Slater pointed to increased preference for open floor plans and slightly lower square footage.

Military growth hasn’t been what was once expected, but has been helpful, Duncan said. UVa has provided some buffer, as well, he said, but he pointed out that even the university has had to tighten its belt. There’s also that Charlottesville remains what’s called a destination location, he said.

“People choose to live in Charlottesville and work elsewhere,” Duncan said.