Fair Value Disclosures (Level 4 inventory fv) (Details 4) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended							9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2015 USD ($)	Jan. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Oct. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2014 USD ($)	Jan. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Oct. 31, 2014 USD ($)
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Inventory Write-down	$ 17,969				$ 5,992			$ 31,279	$ 9,898
Operating communities [Member]
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Inventory Write-down								18,000		$ 17,555
Fair Value, Measurements, Nonrecurring [Member] | Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3 [Member] | Operating communities [Member]
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Number of Operating Communities Tested (in ones)	40	52	58	55	63	65	67
Number of Communities Impaired (in ones)	3	1	4	7	1	2	1
Fair Value Of Communities Net Of Impairment Charges	$ 13,527	$ 16,235	$ 24,968	$ 38,473	$ 14,122	$ 6,211	$ 7,131	$ 13,527	$ 14,122	$ 38,473
Inventory Write-down	$ 6,000	$ 11,100	$ 900	$ 9,855	$ 4,800	$ 1,600	$ 1,300