Note 16 - Commitments and Contingencies

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Notes to Financial Statements

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

16. Commitments and Contingencies

Surety Bonds and Letters of Credit. We are required to obtain surety bonds and letters of credit in support of our obligations for land development and subdivision improvements, homeowner association dues, warranty work, contractor license fees and earnest money deposits. At March 31, 2020, we had outstanding surety bonds and letters of credit totaling $284.0 million and $96.6 million, respectively, including $70.9 million in letters of credit issued by HomeAmerican. The estimated cost to complete obligations related to these bonds and letters of credit were approximately $152.4 million and $51.2 million, respectively. All letters of credit as of March 31, 2020, excluding those issued by HomeAmerican, were issued under our unsecured revolving credit facility (see Note 18 for further discussion of the revolving credit facility). We expect that the obligations secured by these performance bonds and letters of credit generally will be performed in the ordinary course of business and in accordance with the applicable contractual terms. To the extent that the obligations are performed, the related performance bonds and letters of credit should be released and we should not have any continuing obligations. However, in the event any such performance bonds or letters of credit are called, our indemnity obligations could require us to reimburse the issuer of the performance bond or letter of credit.

We have made no material guarantees with respect to third-party obligations.

Litigation. Due to the nature of the homebuilding business, we have been named as defendants in various claims, complaints and other legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business, including product liability claims and claims associated with the sale and financing of homes. In the opinion of management, the outcome of these ordinary course matters will not have a material adverse effect upon our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Lot Option Contracts. In the ordinary course of business, we enter into lot option purchase contracts (“Option Contracts”), generally through a deposit of cash or a letter of credit, for the right to purchase land or lots at a future point in time with predetermined terms. The use of such land option and other contracts generally allow us to reduce the risks associated with direct land ownership and development, reduces our capital and financial commitments, and minimizes the amount of land inventories on our consolidated balance sheets. In certain cases, these contracts will be settled shortly following the end of the period. Our obligation with respect to Option Contracts is generally limited to forfeiture of the related deposits. At March 31, 2020, we had cash deposits and letters of credit totaling $21.4 million and $8.2 million, respectively, at risk associated with the option to purchase 8,533 lots.

Coronavirus/COVID-19 Pandemic. While the response to the pandemic continues to rapidly evolve, many state and local governments had extended and expanded on restrictions that substantially limited the operations of non-essential businesses and the activities of individuals. Certain markets in which we do business stopped our construction and sales of homes and others limited the operations of sales centers and model homes. We continue to market and sell homes in all markets, but economic uncertainty and shelter in place requirements have caused a significant decline in traffic at our sales centers and model homes, and we have seen a significant increase in our cancellation rate. The impact of the decreased traffic and increased cancellation rate was evident in our net new orders for the month of April, which fell 53% year-over-year. While the extent to which the pandemic will impact our financial results in the coming periods depends on future developments, the pandemic and its associated impact on the U.S. economy and consumer confidence could have a material impact to the Company’s future results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.