(Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents Meritage and Taylor Morrison.)
By Vincent Salandro | Builder
Public home builders remained challenged by choppy market conditions during the second quarter. After a slower than typical spring selling season, builders in the second quarter again cited challenging selling conditions, weekend consumer confidence, and elevated interest rates as hurdles in the current operating environment.
D.R. Horton and PulteGroup kicked off the series of earnings reports for the week of July 21, with both highlighting the role incentives will continue to play in the new-home market. Six additional public companies—NVR, Meritage Homes, Taylor Morrison, Century Communities, M/I Homes, and Tri Pointe Homes—reported quarterly results, sharing similar sentiments.
Taylor Morrison CEO Sheryl Palmer noted that incentives are shifting consumer preferences toward spec homes, even among the typical to-be-built customer segments. Meritage Homes noted the 5% decrease in average sales price on orders and 6% decrease in average sales price on closings in the quarter were largely due to the increased utilization of financing incentives in the period.
