Accrued Expenses

9 Months Ended

Jul. 31, 2014

Accrued expenses at July 31, 2014 and October 31, 2013 consisted of the following (amounts in thousands):



	July 31, 2014		October 31, 2013
Land, land development and construction	$	130,304	$	152,674
Compensation and employee benefits	109,753		111,561
Insurance and litigation	98,503		89,104
Warranty	54,227		43,819
Interest	38,406		25,675
Commitments to unconsolidated entities	2,564		3,804
Other	102,913		96,350
	$	536,670	$	522,987

We accrue for expected warranty costs at the time each home is closed and title and possession are transferred to the home buyer. Warranty costs are accrued based upon historical experience. The table below provides, for the periods indicated, a reconciliation of the changes in our warranty accrual (amounts in thousands):



	Nine months ended July 31,						Three months ended July 31,
	2014			2013			2014			2013
Balance, beginning of period	$	43,819		$	41,706		$	52,579		$	41,109
Additions - homes closed during the year	12,272			9,053			4,970			3,831
Addition - Shapell liabilities acquired	11,044						1,800
Increase (decrease) in accruals for homes closed in prior years	2,003			(342		)	581			136
Charges incurred	(14,911		)	(8,350		)	(5,703		)	(3,009		)
Balance, end of period	$	54,227		$	42,067		$	54,227		$	42,067