Talk about hot in Cleveland: The housing market in Tremont is so tight right now that buyers and real estate agents often can be heard complaining there's nothing for sale. Some of that pressure should be alleviated with the rise of new units at Starkweather Place, a 31-unit development that began in 2006, slowed down quite a bit in the recession, and recently revved back up again.

Keith Sutton of Sutton Builders, one of Tremont's original developers, who 25 years ago began building homes here, recently broke ground on six new units. With five already sold, the project is entering the home stretch. He's gearing up for a groundbreaking on the last six units and expects the project to wrap up next year.

"We got hit hard in the recession, but 2013 was a great year for us, especially considering the last five," he says. "This year, there's definitely been an uptick."

The 1,700-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath townhomes start at $250,000 and go up from there. Amenities include contemporary design, granite countertops and a deck overlooking the neighborhood. The units are green-built and include a 15-year, 100-percent tax abatement.

"There seems to be kind of a pent-up demand now, so we've even been able to raise our prices a little bit," Sutton says. "With the cost of building going up, we had to."

Why such demand? "I'm told we have a rare commodity. There's just not a whole lot of stuff available in the neighborhood, and we're well suited for that niche."

Sutton also is a partner in Portside Distilling, which just sold out of its first run of canned craft beer. He runs his development company out of a renovated building at East 23rd and Hamilton. He calls it a "business incubator" that has so far lured a flooring company and a plastering company to move into the city from the 'burbs.

Sutton contributes his recent success to the neighborhood's ever-improving dynamics.

"It's never been better," he says of Tremont. "Part of why commercial businesses are thriving here is because of the residential component. But people are coming from everywhere. This is truly a destination place."