Kelly Drake, president of Mallard Homes, looks forward to meeting with visitors during the Fall Parade of Homes, which starts Saturday. Drake has two entries in this year's event, including this home at 3939 Aster Drive in northwest Lawrence.

Look for personal touches - such as this mobile in Kelly Drake's model house - in several stops on the Fall Parade of Homes.

Kelly Drake isn’t taking any chances this weekend, with hundreds of people poised to walk through the front door of his model home in the Monterey Bluffs subdivision in northwest Lawrence.

The carpet’s vacuumed. Furniture’s in place. A mobile of cloth animals dangles from a ceiling fan in a bedroom, decorated with all the comforts appropriate for an infant.

And there’s a basket of disposable elastic “booties” just inside the front door, for each and every visitor to slip over their shoes should the need arise.

“That’s just to make sure it doesn’t rain,” said Drake, president of Mallard Homes. He figures that such preparation should guarantee good weather for the Fall Parade of Homes. “That’s just to make sure.”

Drake and fellow builders will be welcoming visitors into their finest homes this weekend and next. It’s all part of the annual fall showcase that gives participating members of the Lawrence Home Builders Association a chance to interact with the public, gauge reactions to new features and maybe – just maybe – sell a few homes, whether it’s this weekend or five years from now.

“It’s just a great opportunity for everyone to get exposed to all the different products in all the different price ranges,” said Drake, who has been showing homes on association tours and parade events for more than seven years. “It’s a no-pressure situation for potential buyers. You can just come out to look at houses and get ideas.”

Drake also is hoping to help boost confidence among potential consumers in the area housing market. While area sales are nothing like in 2004 – when his company sold 48 homes – Mallard already has sold a dozen of the 15 homes under way in Monterey Bluffs, northwest of Peterson Road and Monterey Way.

With interest rates still low, he said, buyers simply appear to be taking a more cautious approach to buying. They’re even taking advantage of a slightly slower market by getting more involved in the finishing of homes.

Buyers often will work with Drake to choose masonry (Tuscan-style stones instead of bricks), wall finishes (hand-scraped surfaces, rather than flat paints) and upgraded countertops (granite instead of basic materials) to help make a new house a “semi-custom” home.

“We’re seeing that much more today than we ever have,” Drake said.