Devonleigh Homes Inc. of Orangeville was one of five finalists in the Large Volume Builder category of 2010 Awards of Excellence announced this week by Tarion Warranty Corporation.

The awards to new home builders are based on customer service performance as determined by the builders’ own customers.

Devonleigh’s Andrew and Lisa Kidd say they were surprised and pleased to be among five finalists chosen from more than 5,500 builders registered in Ontario.

Established in 1996, Devonleigh Homes have built more than 1,200 homes in central Ontario, including Alliston, Angus, Mansfield and Orangeville.

They pride themselves on creating homes and neighbourhoods with character and quality.

The Tarion awards were presented to builders in each of four categories: to Tridel of Toronto in the High-Rise Category; Brookfield Homes of Markham, in the Large Volume Category; Fusion Homes of Southwestern Ontario in the Medium Volume Category, and Clancy Builders Ltd. of Leith, in the Small Volume Category.

To determine the award recipients, a survey was sent to more than 38,000 new home buyers who took possession between October 1, 2008 and September 30, 2009.

More than 9,000 responses were received and the results were tabulated by Harris/Decima and Crunch Research.