Hovnanian buys Florida homebuilder

By John Spence
MarketWatch
Last Update: 4:04 PM ET Aug. 8, 2005

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. said Monday it
acquired the assets of First Home Builders of Florida for an
undisclosed amount of cash.
Hovnanian, based in Red Bank, N.J., said the purchase of the privately
held homebuilder will augment its presence in western Florida.
Last year, First Home Builders delivered 1,819 homes and revenue of
$308 million, Hovnanian said. At the end of July, the Cape Coral,
Fla., homebuilder had a backlog of about 4,350 homes with a sales
value of $925 million.
Last week, Hovnanian said it acquired nearly all the homebuilding
assets of Ohio-based Oster Homes.
Earlier in the year, Hovnanian also acquired two other privately held
homebuilders with operations in Florida: Cambridge Homes and Town &
Country Homes.
“We have targeted further investment in Florida because the regulatory
process in the state is lengthening, which is constricting the supply
of land available for homebuilding,” said Ara Hovnanian, chief
executive.
“At the same time, population growth and job growth in Florida are
creating sustained demand for new homes,” Hovnanian added.
The company said it anticipates the acquisition of First Home Builders
will add about 5 cents a share to fiscal 2005 earnings.
Shares of Hovnanian lost 5.5% to $62 on Monday.
John Spence is a reporter for MarketWatch in Boston.