Print edition: 
Ron Peake, best known in Wichita for the upscale homes he built as Ron Peake Design-Build, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.
In a filing this week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wichita, Peake listed assets of $500,000 to $1 million and liabilities of $500,000 to $1 million. He is represented by attorney Mike Morris of Klenda Mitchell Austerman and Zuercher of Wichita.
Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a liquidation process by law, generally meaning that the business ceases operations unless continued by the Chapter 7 trustee.
Peake, whose speciality was the design and construction of high-end homes, has been a fixture in the Wichita building industry since 1976. His firm has built homes in Lake Pointe, Shadybrooke, Pinehurst and Foliage. He also has developed subdivisions at Remington Place, The Carriage Homes at Wilson Estates and Elk Creek.
Peake holds degrees in architecture, and community and regional planning from Kansas State University. He did not return telephone calls Tuesday.
The bankruptcy comes at a time when Wichita industry observers think the new home market is beginning to emerge from the recession.
“It’s been struggling,” said Brad Bachman of Brad Bachman Homes. “Volume is down but it does show signs of life.”
Bachman said builders have been under pressure during the downturn to keep inventories low.
“You have to be careful about your inventory and what you’re sitting on,” he said. “Everybody’s looking for the custom work that’s sold from the get-go. Not a lot of spec building going on.”
But with interest rates and construction material costs low, Bachman is optimistic that housing starts will pick up.
“People have sat back and been reluctant to do anything,” he said. “And finally a certain amount of the market wants to move forward.”
