Hartland Homes, Lincoln’s largest homebuilder, laid off employees this week for what its owner said is the first time in its 23-year history.

Duane Hartman declined to say how many of the business’s approximately 20 employees lost their jobs, referring to it as “a few.”

Most of Hartland’s work is done by subcontractors, but according to its Web site, its full-time employees include salespeople, construction superintendents, office staff and warranty specialists.

Hartman blamed the layoffs on a local homebuilding market that is among the worst he’s ever seen.

The number of local housing starts last year was the lowest in at least a decade, and the number of new home sales has declined more than 35 percent since 2005.

Hartman said his company, which builds mostly affordable homes, has been hit particularly hard by impact fees, which the city started in 2003 to help pay for infrastructure needed for new developments.

The fees, nearly $5,000 for a single-family home, are much harder to absorb on lower-priced homes, he said.

Fred Hoke, government affairs director for the Homebuilders Association of Lincoln, said Hartland is far from the only construction firm to feel the pain of the homebuilding slump.

Other builders and subcontractors have had to cut their workforces, he said, and “it finally caught up with (Hartland).”

Hartman said he hopes to be able to rehire the laid-off employees when business picks up again, but he conceded that could be awhile.

“It sounds like it’s going to be at least a year before we see any improvement,” he said.

Reach Matt Olberding at 473-2647 or molberding@journalstar.com.