HOVNANIAN ENTERPRISES INC - Annual Report: 2021 (Form 10-K)

HOVNANIAN ENTERPRISES, INC.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE:

Part III — Those portions of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement to be filed pursuant to Regulation 14A in connection with registrant’s annual meeting of stockholders to be held on March 29, 2022, which are responsive to those parts of Part III, Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 as identified herein.

FORM 10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part I

ITEM 1

BUSINESS

Business Overview

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (“HEI”) conducts all of its homebuilding and financial services operations through its subsidiaries (references herein to the “Company”, “we”, “us” or “our” refer to HEI and its consolidated subsidiaries and should be understood to reflect the consolidated business of HEI’s subsidiaries). Through its subsidiaries, HEI designs, constructs, markets, and sells single-family detached homes, attached townhomes and condominiums, urban infill, and active lifestyle homes in planned residential developments and is one of the nation’s largest builders of residential homes. Founded in 1959 by Kevork Hovnanian, HEI was incorporated in New Jersey in 1967 and reincorporated in Delaware in 1983. Since the incorporation of HEI’s predecessor company, the Company combined with its unconsolidated joint ventures have delivered in excess of 355,000 homes, including 6,793 homes in fiscal 2021. The Company has two distinct operations: homebuilding and financial services. Our homebuilding operations consist of six segments: Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest and West. Our financial services operations provide mortgage loans and title services to the customers of our homebuilding operations.

We are currently, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, offering homes for sale in 124 communities in 26 markets in 14 states throughout the United States. We market and build homes for first-time buyers, first-time and second-time move-up buyers, luxury buyers, active lifestyle buyers and empty nesters. We offer a variety of home styles at base prices ranging from $173,000 to $1,273,000 with an average sales price, including options, of $431,000 nationwide in fiscal 2021.

Our operations span all significant aspects of the home-buying process – from design, construction, and sale, to mortgage origination and title services.

The following is a summary of our growth history:

1959 - Founded by Kevork Hovnanian as a New Jersey homebuilder.

1983 - Completed initial public offering.

1986 - Entered the North Carolina market through the investment in New Fortis Homes.

1992 - Entered the greater Washington, D.C. market.

1994 - Entered the Coastal Southern California market.

1998 - Expanded in the greater Washington, D.C. market through the acquisition of P.C. Homes.

1999 - Entered the Dallas, Texas market through our acquisition of Goodman Homes. Further diversified and strengthened our position as New Jersey’s largest homebuilder through the acquisition of Matzel & Mumford.

2001 - Continued expansion in the greater Washington D.C. and North Carolina markets through the acquisition of Washington Homes. This acquisition further strengthened our operations in each of these markets.

2002 - Entered the Central Valley market in Northern California and Inland Empire region of Southern California through the acquisition of Forecast Homes.

2003 - Expanded operations in Texas and entered the Houston market through the acquisition of Parkside Homes and Brighton Homes. Entered the greater Ohio market through our acquisition of Summit Homes and entered the greater metro Phoenix market through our acquisition of Great Western Homes.

2004 - Entered the greater Tampa, Florida market through the acquisition of Windward Homes and started operations in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota market.

2005 - Entered the Orlando, Florida market through our acquisition of Cambridge Homes and entered the greater Chicago, Illinois market and expanded our position in Florida and Minnesota through the acquisition of the operations of Town & Country Homes, which occurred concurrently with our entering into a joint venture with affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Advisors to own and develop Town & Country Homes’ existing residential communities. We also entered the Cleveland, Ohio market through the acquisition of Oster Homes.

2006 - Entered the coastal markets of South Carolina and Georgia through the acquisition of Craftbuilt Homes.

During fiscal 2016, we exited the Minneapolis, Minnesota and Raleigh, North Carolina markets and sold land portfolios in those markets. During fiscal 2018, we completed a wind down of our operations in the San Francisco Bay area in Northern California and in Tampa, Florida. During fiscal 2020, we began a wind down of our operations in the Chicago, Illinois market.

Geographic Breakdown of Markets by Segment

The Company markets and builds homes that are constructed in 16 of the nation’s top 50 housing markets. We segregate our homebuilding operations geographically into the following six segments:

Northeast: New Jersey and Pennsylvania

Mid-Atlantic: Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and West Virginia

Midwest: Illinois and Ohio

Southeast: Florida, Georgia and South Carolina

Southwest: Arizona and Texas

West: California

For financial information about our segments, see Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

Human Capital

As of October 31, 2021, we employed 1,784 full-time associates of whom 1,268 were involved in our Homebuilding operations, 165 were involved in the Financial Services operations and 351 were involved in our Corporate operations.  We do not have collective bargaining agreements relating to any of our associates.

Successful execution of our strategy is dependent on attracting, developing and retaining key associates and members of our management team. The skills, experience and industry knowledge of our team significantly benefit our operations and performance. We continuously evaluate, modify, and enhance our internal processes and technologies to increase engagement, productivity, efficiency and the skills our associates need to be successful.

We believe that talented associates are the Company’s greatest asset and play a key role in creating long-term value for our stakeholders. As of October 31, 2021, 19% of our associates had been with the Company for more than 15 years, and the average tenure of all associates was greater than seven years. We understand that our ultimate success and ability to compete are significantly dependent on how well we identify, hire, train, and retain highly qualified personnel. We realize that each associate has a unique vision and their own special talents. We are committed to being an employer that fosters the growth of each associate, while building an inclusive and diverse workforce.

In fiscal 2021, our Accelerated Leadership Development Program (ALDP) formed its second class following the initial success of the 2018 ALDP. The goal of this program is to identify leaders within and outside of the organization (as part of our recruiting efforts) to mentor, in order to drive growth and value creation, as well as considerations for succession planning. We actively seek to attract women and candidates of diverse backgrounds to the ALDP, and we significantly increased the proportion of women and underrepresented groups by 44% with our fiscal 2021 ALDP class.

We believe that our focus on diversity and inclusion across the organization positions the Company to deliver innovation and growth. We have a diverse associate base comprised of 28% non-white associates as of October 31, 2021. Additionally, as of October 31, 2021, 44% of our associates were women, and women represent 40% of all associates in manager and more senior positions.

Promoting a diverse and inclusive work environment is a major priority at Hovnanian. In 2020, the Company formed a Diversity & Inclusion Committee, which is led by the CEO and comprised of members of senior leadership and associates in various functions throughout the organization representing various backgrounds. The objective of the committee is to advise on and evaluate the Company’s diversity and inclusion initiatives and to offer suggestions and guidance.  The Diversity & Inclusion Committee meets quarterly. All associates are required to take a Diversity Made Simple training course. Associates in leadership positions (representing approximately 20% of all associates) are obligated to participate in more extensive diversity and inclusion training sessions.

Hovnanian is also a founding member of the Building Talent Foundation whose mission is to advance the education, training and careers of people from underrepresented groups in the fields of skilled technical workers and as business owners in the residential construction industry.

Through a combination of competitive benefits and educational programs, we believe that we positively contribute to the well-being of our associates and the communities in which they live and work. Our benefits packages include medical, dental, and vision coverage, as well as health savings accounts, life insurance, disability income, 401(k) savings plan with a company match and other assistance and wellness programs. Together, these benefits help keep our associates and their dependents healthy, while giving them tax-advantaged ways to save for retirement and establish long-term financial security. This package of programs is routinely reevaluated in order to meet the changing needs of our associates in our diverse organization.

From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout, we made the safety of our associates, trade partners and customers our top priority. We were quick to respond with our company wide COVID-19 Prevention, Preparedness & Response Plan and further implemented state-specific COVID-19 plans where required. Our COVID-19 plans were generated and periodically amended following the most current guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as well as state requirements based on the geographic location of our various operations.

During fiscal 2021, in light of the Company’s successful experience managing the remote working environment due to the pandemic and the recognition of the associated environmental benefits, the Company introduced a hybrid work schedule whereby, once COVID-19 restrictions are lifted and associates anticipate returning to the office,  most office associates may work two days a week from home. We believe this change to a hybrid work model will promote a healthier work and home life balance for our associates while simultaneously providing the environmental benefits of having fewer vehicles on the road.

We also have committed considerable resources to furthering our associates’ personal and professional growth. We have a repository of over 400 training modules/courses to facilitate these learning sessions in both in-person and virtual settings, including mandatory diversity, ethics, sexual harassment and safety training courses.

Corporate Offices and Available Information

Our corporate offices are located at 90 Matawan Road, Fifth Floor, Matawan, New Jersey 07747 (See Item 2-Properties). Our telephone number is 732-747-7800, and our Internet web site address is www.khov.com. Information available on or through our web site is not a part of this Form 10-K. We make available free of charge through our web site our Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to these reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(d) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”), as soon as reasonably practicable after they are filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Copies of the Company’s Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to these reports are available free of charge upon request. The SEC maintains an Internet site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Business Strategies

Given our belief in the long-term recovery of the homebuilding market, we remain focused on identifying new land parcels, which will allow us to continue to improve our financial performance. For seven consecutive quarters through the third quarter of fiscal 2019, our total number of lots controlled increased as compared to the same period of the prior year. This growth in lot control led to increased community count in fiscal 2019, which along with faster absorption pace per community, allowed us to increase fiscal 2020 deliveries by 15.0% over fiscal 2019, and increased our October 31, 2020 backlog by 55.3% over October 31, 2019. This faster absorption pace continued in fiscal 2021, resulting in a 9.1% increase in deliveries over fiscal 2020 and caused our community count to decrease during the first half of fiscal 2021, however, we have increased our community count in recent months to 124 at October 31, 2021, and expect to continue to grow community count going forward, although it may fluctuate up and down during the first half of fiscal 2022. We continue to see opportunities to purchase land at prices that make economic sense in light of our current sales prices and sales paces and plan to continue actively pursuing such land acquisitions. New land purchases at pricing that we believe will generate appropriate investment returns and drive greater operating efficiencies are needed to sustain profitability. Our continued profitability in fiscal 2021 and our expectations for the future enabled us to reverse a substantial portion of our valuation allowance previously recorded against our deferred tax assets, creating positive equity.

We continue to be focused on maintaining adequate liquidity and evaluating new investment opportunities. Our excess liquidity in fiscal 2021 allowed us to repurchase $180.9 million of senior secured notes in the third and fourth quarters of the fiscal year. In addition to our current focus on liquidity, we intend to continue to focus on our historic key business strategies, as enumerated below. We believe that these strategies separate us from our competitors in the residential homebuilding industry and the adoption, implementation and adherence to these principles will continue to benefit our business.

Our goal is to become a significant builder in each of the selected markets in which we operate, which will enable us to achieve powers and economies of scale and differentiate ourselves from most of our competitors.

As noted above, we offer a broad product array to provide housing to a wide range of customers. Our customers consist of first-time buyers, first-time and second-time move-up buyers, luxury buyers, active lifestyle buyers and empty nesters. Our diverse product array includes single-family detached homes, attached townhomes and condominiums, urban infill and active lifestyle homes.

We are committed to customer satisfaction and quality in the homes that we build. We recognize that our future success rests in the ability to deliver quality homes to satisfied customers. We seek to expand our commitment to customer service through a variety of quality initiatives. In addition, our focus remains on attracting and developing quality associates. See "Human Capital" above for further discussion.

We focus on achieving high return on invested capital. Each new community is evaluated based on its ability to meet or exceed internal rate of return requirements. Our belief is that the best way to create lasting value for our shareholders is through a strong focus on return on invested capital.

We prefer to use a risk-averse land acquisition strategy. We attempt to acquire land with a minimum cash investment and negotiate takedown options, thereby limiting the financial exposure to the amounts invested in property and predevelopment costs. This approach significantly reduces our risk and generally allows us to obtain necessary development approvals before acquisition of the land.

Our strategy includes homebuilding and land development joint ventures as a means of controlling lot positions, expanding our market opportunities, establishing strategic alliances, reducing our risk profile, leveraging our capital base and enhancing our returns on capital. Our homebuilding joint ventures are generally entered into with third-party investors to develop land and construct homes that are sold directly to home buyers. Our land development joint ventures include those with developers and other homebuilders, as well as financial investors to develop finished lots for sale to the joint venture’s members or other third parties.

We manage our financial services operations to better serve all of our home buyers. Our current mortgage financing and title service operations enhance our contact with customers and allow us to coordinate the home-buying experience from beginning to end.

Operating Policies and Procedures

We attempt to reduce the effect of certain risks inherent in the housing industry through the following policies and procedures:

Training - Our training is designed to provide our associates with the knowledge, attitudes, skills and habits necessary to succeed in their jobs. Our training department regularly conducts in-person, online or webinar training in sales, construction, administration and managerial skills.

Land Acquisition, Planning, and Development - Before entering into a contract to acquire land, we complete extensive comparative studies and analyses which assist us in evaluating the economic feasibility of such land acquisition. We generally follow a policy of acquiring options to purchase land for future community developments.

Design - Our residential communities are generally located in urban and suburban areas easily accessible through public and personal transportation. Our communities are designed as neighborhoods that fit existing land characteristics. We strive to create diversity within the overall planned community by offering a mix of homes with differing architecture, textures and colors. Recreational amenities, such as swimming pools, tennis courts, clubhouses, open areas and tot lots, are frequently included.

Construction - We design and supervise the development and building of our communities. Our homes are constructed according to standardized prototypes, which are designed and engineered to provide innovative product design while attempting to minimize costs of construction. We generally employ subcontractors for the installation of site improvements and construction of homes. Agreements with subcontractors are generally short term and provide for a fixed price for labor and materials. We rigorously control costs through the use of computerized monitoring systems.

Because of the risks involved in speculative building, our general policy is to construct an attached condominium or townhouse building only after signing contracts for the sale of at least 50% of the homes in that building. A majority of our single-family detached homes are constructed after the signing of a sales contract and mortgage approval has been obtained. This limits the buildup of inventory of unsold homes and the costs of maintaining and carrying that inventory.

Materials and Subcontractors - We attempt to maintain efficient operations by utilizing standardized materials available from a variety of sources. In addition, we generally contract with subcontractors to construct our homes. We have reduced construction and administrative costs by consolidating the number of vendors serving certain markets and by executing national purchasing contracts with select vendors. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we have experienced construction delays due to shortages in the supply of materials, as well as labor shortages in all of our markets. The impact and the particular materials associated with the delays is varied from market to market, and we are currently experiencing increased construction cycle times by 45-60 days in many of our markets, but such timeframes could be elongated. We cannot predict the extent to which shortages in necessary materials or labor will continue or re-occur in our markets in the future.

Marketing and Sales - Our homes in residential communities are sold principally through on-site sales offices. In order to respond to our customers’ needs and trends in housing design, we rely upon our internal market research group to analyze information gathered from, among other sources, buyer profiles, exit interviews at model sites, focus groups and demographic databases. We make use of our website, internet, newspaper, radio, television, magazine, billboard, video and direct mail advertising, special and promotional events, illustrated brochures and full-sized and scale model homes in our comprehensive marketing program. In addition, we have home design galleries in our Florida, Ohio, South Carolina and Virginia markets, which offer a wide range of customer options to satisfy individual customer tastes. 

In fiscal 2019, we established a national call center which is responsible for follow up generated by our web site and our digital marketing efforts. This call center continues to be a critical sales tool since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The call center supports our ability to swiftly respond to incoming customer leads, schedule and conduct virtual tours and video chats, as well as set up in person model home tours.

Customer Service and Quality Control - In many of our markets, associates are responsible for customer service and preclosing quality control inspections as well as responding to post-closing customer needs. Prior to closing, each home is inspected and any necessary completion work is undertaken by us or our subcontractors. Our homes are enrolled in a standard limited warranty program which, in general, provides a homebuyer with a limited warranty for the home’s materials and workmanship which follows each state’s applicable statute of repose. All of the warranties contain standard exceptions, including, but not limited to, damage caused by the customer.

Customer Financing - We sell our homes to customers who generally finance their purchases through mortgages. Our financial services segment provides our customers with competitive financing and coordinates and expedites the loan origination transaction through the steps of loan application, loan approval, and closing and title services. We originate loans in each of the states in which we build homes. We believe that our ability to offer financing to customers on competitive terms as a part of the sales process is an important factor in completing sales.

During the year ended October 31, 2021, for the markets in which our mortgage subsidiaries originated loans, 8.5% of our home buyers paid in cash and 68.3% of our noncash home buyers obtained mortgages from our mortgage banking subsidiary. The loans we originated in fiscal 2021 were 71.9% prime and 27.4% Federal Housing Administration/Veterans Affairs (“FHA/VA”). The remaining 0.7% of our loan originations represent loans which exceed conforming conventions.

We sell virtually all of the loans and loan-servicing rights that we originate within a short period of time. Loans are sold either individually or against forward commitments to institutional investors, including banks, mortgage banking firms, and savings and loan associations.

Residential Development Activities

Our residential development activities include site planning and engineering, obtaining environmental and other regulatory approvals and constructing roads, sewer, water, and drainage facilities, recreational facilities, and other amenities and marketing and selling homes. These activities are performed by our associates, together with independent architects, consultants and contractors. Our associates also carry out long-term planning of communities. A residential development generally includes single-family detached homes and/or a number of residential buildings containing from two to 24 individual homes per building, together with amenities, such as club houses, swimming pools, tennis courts, tot lots and open areas.

Current base prices for our homes in contract backlog at October 31, 2021, range from $578,000 to $1,200,000 in the Northeast, from $220,000 to $1,120,000 in the Mid-Atlantic, from $173,000 to $680,000 in the Midwest, from $251,000 to $1,273,000 in the Southeast, from $239,000 to $803,000 in the Southwest and from $308,000 to $1,063,000 in the West. Closings generally occur and are typically reflected in revenues within six to nine months of when sales contracts are signed.

Information on homes delivered by segment for the year ended October 31, 2021, is set forth below:

(1) Represents housing revenues and home deliveries for our unconsolidated homebuilding joint ventures for the period. We provide this data as a supplement to our consolidated results as an indicator of the volume managed in our unconsolidated joint ventures. See Note 20 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for a further discussion of our unconsolidated joint ventures.

The value of our net sales contracts, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, increased 2.6% to $2.9 billion for the year ended October 31, 2021 from $2.8 billion for the year ended October 31, 2020, while the number of homes contracted decreased 13.4% to 6,023 in fiscal 2021 from 6,953 in fiscal 2020. The decrease in the number of homes contracted occurred along with a 14.8% decrease in the average number of open-for-sale communities from 128 for fiscal 2020 to 109 for fiscal 2021. However, we ended fiscal 2021 with 124 active selling communities. We contracted an average of 55.3 homes per average active selling community in fiscal 2021 compared to 54.3 homes per average active selling community in fiscal 2020, a 1.8% increase in sales pace per community for fiscal 2021.

 Information on the value of net sales contracts by segment for the years ended October 31, 2021 and 2020, is set forth below:

(1) Represents net contract dollars for our unconsolidated homebuilding joint ventures for the period. We provide this data as a supplement to our consolidated results as an indicator of the volume managed in our unconsolidated joint ventures. See Note 20 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for a further discussion of our unconsolidated joint ventures.

The following table summarizes our active selling communities under development as of October 31, 2021. The contracted not delivered and remaining homes available in our active selling communities are included in the consolidated total homesites under the total residential real estate chart in Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” 

Active Selling Communities

Backlog

At October 31, 2021 and 2020, including unconsolidated joint ventures, we had a backlog of signed contracts for 5,535 homes and 4,820 homes, respectively, representing a 14.8% increase, with sales values aggregating $2.2 billion and $1.8 billion, respectively. The majority of our backlog at October 31, 2021 is expected to be completed and closed within the next six to nine months. At November 30, 2021 and 2020, our backlog of signed contracts, including unconsolidated joint ventures, was 5,820 homes and 5,089 homes, respectively, with sales values aggregating $2.3 billion and $1.9 billion, respectively. For information on our backlog excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, see the table on page 34 under Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Results of Operations -Homebuilding.”

Sales of our homes typically are made pursuant to a standard sales contract that provides the customer with a statutorily mandated right of rescission for a period ranging up to 15 days after execution. This contract requires a nominal customer deposit at the time of signing. In addition, in the Northeast, and some sections of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, we typically obtain an additional 5% to 10% down payment due within 30 to 60 days after signing. In most markets, an additional deposit is required when a customer selects and commits to optional upgrades in the home. The contract may include a financing contingency, which permits customers to cancel their obligation in the event mortgage financing at prevailing interest rates (including financing arranged or provided by us) is unobtainable within the period specified in the contract. This contingency period typically is four to eight weeks following the date of execution of the contract. When housing values decline in certain markets, some customers cancel their contracts and forfeit their deposits. Cancellation rates are discussed further in Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Sales contracts are included in backlog once the sales contract is signed by the customer, which in some cases includes contracts that are in the rescission or cancellation periods. However, revenues from sales of homes are recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations, when title to the home is conveyed to the buyer, adequate initial and continuing investments have been received, and there is no continued involvement.

Residential Land Inventory in Planning

It is our objective to control a supply of land, primarily through options, whenever possible, consistent with anticipated homebuilding requirements in each of our housing markets. Controlled land (land owned and under option) as of October 31, 2021, exclusive of communities under development described above under “Active Selling Communities” and excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, is summarized in the following table. The proposed developable home sites in communities in planning are included in the 31,243 consolidated total home sites under the total residential real estate table in Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” on page 29.

Communities in Planning

We either option or acquire improved or unimproved home sites from land developers or other sellers. Under a typical agreement with the land developer, we purchase a minimal number of home sites. The balance of the home sites to be purchased is covered under an option agreement or a nonrecourse purchase agreement. During a declining homebuilding market, we typically decide to mothball (or stop development on) certain communities where we have determined that current market conditions did not justify further investment at that time. When we decide to mothball a community, the inventory is reclassified on our Consolidated Balance Sheets from Sold and unsold homes and lots under development to Land and land options held for future development or sale. See Note 3 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion on mothballed communities. For additional financial information regarding our homebuilding segments, see Note 10 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Raw Materials

The homebuilding industry has from time to time experienced raw material and labor shortages. In particular, shortages and fluctuations in the price of lumber or in other important raw materials could result in delays in the start or completion of or increase the cost of developing one or more of our residential communities. We attempt to maintain efficient operations by utilizing standardized materials available from a variety of sources. In addition, we generally contract with subcontractors to construct our homes. We have reduced construction and administrative costs by consolidating the number of vendors serving certain markets and by executing national purchasing contracts with select vendors. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we have experienced construction delays due to shortages in the supply of materials, as well as labor shortages in all of our markets. Additionally, we experienced a significant increase in lumber prices during fiscal 2021, although we have recently seen prices start to decrease. We cannot predict, however, the extent to which shortages in necessary raw materials or labor may occur in the future.

Seasonality

Our business is seasonal in nature and, historically, weather-related problems, typically in the fall, late winter and early spring, can delay starts or closings and increase costs.

Competition

Our homebuilding operations are highly competitive. We are among the top 15 homebuilders in the United States in both homebuilding revenues and home deliveries. We compete with numerous real estate developers in each of the geographic areas in which we operate. Our competition ranges from small local builders to larger regional builders to publicly owned builders and developers, some of which have greater sales and financial resources than we do. Previously owned homes and the availability of rental housing provide additional competition. We compete primarily on the basis of reputation, price, location, design, quality, service and amenities.

Regulation and Environmental Matters

We are subject to extensive and complex laws and regulations that affect the development of land and home building, sales and customer financing processes concerning zoning, building design, construction, and similar matters, including local regulations which impose restrictive zoning and density requirements in order to limit the number of homes that can eventually be built within the boundaries of a particular locality. In addition, we are subject to registration and filing requirements in connection with the construction, advertisement and sale of our communities in certain states and localities in which we operate even if all necessary government approvals have been obtained. We may also be subject to periodic delays or may be precluded entirely from developing communities due to building moratoriums that could be implemented in the future in the states in which we operate. Generally, such moratoriums relate to insufficient water or sewerage facilities or inadequate road capacity.

In addition, some state and local governments in markets where we operate have approved, and others may approve, slow-growth, or no-growth initiatives that could negatively affect the availability of land and building opportunities within those areas. Approval of these initiatives could adversely affect our ability to build and sell homes in the affected markets and/or could require the satisfaction of additional administrative and regulatory requirements, which could result in slowing the progress or increasing the costs of our homebuilding operations in these markets. Any such delays or costs could have a negative effect on our future revenues and earnings.

We are also subject to a variety of local, state, federal and foreign laws and regulations concerning protection of health and the environment, including those regulating the emission or discharge of materials into the environment, the management of storm water runoff at construction sites, the handling, use, storage and disposal of hazardous substances, impacts to wetlands and other sensitive environments, and the remediation of contamination at properties that we have owned or developed or currently own or are developing (“environmental laws”). The particular environmental laws which apply to any given community vary greatly according to the community site, the site’s environmental conditions and the present and former uses of the site. See Risk Factors – “Homebuilders are subject to a number of federal, local, state, and foreign laws and regulations concerning the development of land, the homebuilding, sales, and customer financing processes and the protection of the environment, which can cause us to incur delays and costs associated with compliance and which can prohibit or restrict our activity in some regions or areas”, Item 3 “Legal Proceedings” and Note 18 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Despite our past ability to obtain necessary permits and approvals for our communities, we anticipate that increasingly stringent requirements will be imposed on developers and homebuilders in the future. Although we cannot reliably predict the extent of any effect these requirements may have on us, they could result in time-consuming and expensive compliance programs and in substantial expenditures, which could cause delays and increase our cost of operations. In addition, our ability to obtain or renew permits or approvals and the continued effectiveness of permits already granted or approvals already obtained is dependent upon many factors, some of which are beyond our control, such as changes in policies, rules and regulations and their interpretation and application.

ITEM 1A

RISK FACTORS

You should carefully consider the following risks in addition to the other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the Consolidated Financial Statements and the notes thereto.

Risk Relating to Our Business and Industry

The homebuilding industry is significantly affected by changes in general and local economic conditions and real estate markets, which could affect our ability to build homes at prices our customers are willing or able to pay, could reduce profits that may not be recaptured, could result in cancellation of sales contracts, and could affect our liquidity.

The homebuilding industry is cyclical, has from time to time experienced significant difficulties, and is significantly affected by changes in general and local economic conditions such as:   

Turmoil in the financial markets could affect our liquidity. In addition, our cash balances are primarily invested in short-term government-backed instruments. The remaining cash balances are held at numerous financial institutions and may, at times, exceed insurable amounts. We seek to mitigate this risk by depositing our cash in major financial institutions and diversifying our investments. In addition, our homebuilding operations often require us to obtain letters of credit. We have certain stand-alone letter of credit facilities and agreements pursuant to which letters of credit are issued. However, we may need additional letters of credit above the amounts provided under these facilities and letters of credit may not be issued under our current senior secured revolving credit facility. If we are unable to obtain such additional letters of credit as needed to operate our business, we would be adversely affected.

In addition, geopolitical events, acts of war or terrorism, threats to national security, civil unrest, any outbreak or escalation of hostilities throughout the world and health pandemics may have a substantial impact on the economy, consumer confidence, the housing market, our associates and our customers.

The difficulties described above could cause us to take longer and incur more costs to build our homes. In addition, our insurance may not fully cover business interruptions or losses caused by weather conditions and man-made or natural disasters and we may not be able to recapture increased costs by raising prices in many cases because we fix our prices up to 12 months in advance of delivery by signing home sales contracts. Some home buyers may also cancel or not honor their home sales contracts altogether.

Raw material and labor shortages and price fluctuations could delay or increase the cost of home construction and adversely affect our operating results.

The homebuilding industry is vulnerable to raw material and labor shortages and has from time to time experienced such shortages. In particular, shortages and fluctuations in the price of lumber or in other important raw materials could result in delays in the start or completion of, or increase the cost of, developing one or more of our residential communities. Pricing for labor and raw materials can be affected by various national, regional, local, economic and political factors. For example, the federal government has imposed new or increased tariffs or duties on an array of imported materials and goods that are used in connection with the construction and delivery of our homes, including lumber, raising our costs for these items (or products made with them). Such government imposed tariffs and trade regulations on imported building supplies, and retaliatory measures by other countries, may in the future have significant impacts on the cost to construct our homes and on our customers’ budgets, including by causing disruptions or shortages in our supply chain. We have experienced some labor shortages, price fluctuations and increased labor costs, including as a result of inflation or wage increases, over the past few years. The cost of labor may be adversely affected by changes in immigration laws and trends in labor migration. In addition, increased demand could increase material and labor costs. Due to significantly increased demand in June and July of 2020, we began increasing home prices which continued throughout fiscal 2021. While we believe that these price increases could offset potential material and labor cost increases, if rising labor and house construction costs substantially outpace increases in the income of potential purchasers we may be limited in our ability to raise home sale prices, which may result in lower gross margins. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we have experienced construction delays due to shortages in the supply of materials, as well as labor shortages in all of our markets. Additionally, we experienced a significant increase in lumber prices during fiscal 2021, although we have recently seen prices start to decrease.

Our business has been, and could continue to be, materially and adversely disrupted by the present outbreak and worldwide spread of COVID-19 and the measures that international, federal, state and local governments, agencies, law enforcement and/or health authorities implement to address it. 

There have been extraordinary and wide-ranging actions taken by international, federal, state and local public health and governmental authorities to contain and combat the outbreak and worldwide spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the United States and across the world, including quarantines, curfews, “stay-at-home” or “shelter in place” orders and similar mandates for many individuals to substantially restrict daily activities and for many businesses to curtail or cease normal operations.  Such measures undertaken by governmental authorities to address COVID-19 have, and could continue to, significantly disrupt or prevent us from operating our business in the ordinary course for an extended period, and thereby, and/or along with any associated economic and consumer uncertainty, have a material adverse impact on our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Our response to the various governmental measures in mid-March and early April of 2020, including, among other measures, temporarily closing our sales offices, model homes and design studios to the general public and limiting our construction operations, and the response of municipal and private services we rely on, substantially tempered our sales pace. Beginning in May 2020 and continuing through April 30, 2021, our sales pace exceeded our pre-COVID sales pace. The further spread of COVID-19 and a resurgence of the infection rate have led governmental authorities to once again tighten restrictions. Although our sales pace and net contracts have continued to be reasonably strong, similar to pre-COVID sales pace, they have slowed some more recently, and we remain uncertain regarding the full long-term magnitude or duration of the business and economic impacts from the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. Further, it remains unknown whether recent, current or anticipated demand will continue once the current COVID-19 pandemic subsides.

Our business could also be negatively impacted over the medium-to-longer term if the lasting disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic decrease consumer confidence generally or more particularly with respect to purchasing a home; cause civil unrest; or precipitate a prolonged economic downturn and/or an extended rise in unemployment or tempering of wage growth, any of which could lower demand for our homes; impair our ability to sell and build homes in a typical manner or at all, generate revenues and cash flows, and/or access our senior secured revolving credit facility or the capital or lending markets (or significantly increase the costs of doing so), as may be necessary to sustain our business; increase the costs or decrease the supply of building materials or the availability of subcontractors and other talent, including as a result of infections or medically necessary or recommended self-quarantining, or governmental mandates to direct production activities to support public health efforts; increase costs of doing business due to the potential impact of vaccine mandates/testing requirements; and/or result in our recognizing charges in future periods, which may be material, for impairments, land option write-offs or restructuring. Such a circumstance could, among other things, exhaust our available liquidity (and ability to access liquidity sources) and/or trigger an acceleration to pay a significant portion or all of our then-outstanding debt obligations, which we may be unable to do. The inherent uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, due in part to the evolving and changing environment, infection levels and governmental directives, concerns about the winter months, public health challenges and progress, and market reactions thereto, also make it more challenging for our management to estimate the future performance of our business and develop strategies to generate growth or achieve our objectives. 

Should the adverse impacts described above (or others that are currently unknown) occur or intensify, whether individually or collectively, we would expect to experience, among other things, decreases in our net contracts, homes delivered, average selling prices, revenues and profitability, some of which we experienced in March and April of 2020, and such impacts could be material to our Consolidated Financial Statements in future periods.

The homebuilding industry is significantly affected by changes in weather and other environmental conditions, and resulting governmental regulations. 

Weather conditions and man-made or natural disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods or prolonged precipitation, droughts, fires and other environmental conditions can harm the local homebuilding business. Additionally, the physical impacts of climate change may cause these occurrences to increase in frequency, severity and duration, which can delay home construction, increase costs by damaging inventories, reduce the availability of building materials, and negatively impact the demand for new homes in affected areas, as well as slow down or otherwise impair the ability of utilities and local governmental authorities to provide approvals and service to new housing communities. For example, wildfires in California and hurricanes in Texas and Florida in recent years have at various times caused utility company delays, slowing of our production process, increased cost of operations and also have impacted our sales and construction activity in affected markets during the related time periods. Additionally, other coastal areas where we operate face increased risks of adverse weather or natural disasters.

In addition, there is a growing concern from advocacy groups and the general public that the emissions of greenhouse gases and other human activities have caused, or will cause, significant changes in weather patterns and temperatures and the frequency and severity of natural disasters. Government mandates, standards and regulations enacted in response to these projected climate changes impacts could result in restrictions on land development in certain areas or increased energy, transportation and raw material costs that may adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

A significant downturn in the homebuilding industry could materially and adversely affect our business.

The homebuilding industry experienced a significant and sustained downturn that began in 2007, during which the lowest volumes of housing starts were significantly below troughs in previous downturns. This downturn resulted in an industry-wide softening of demand for new homes due to a lack of consumer confidence, decreased availability of mortgage financing, and large supplies of resale and new home inventories, among other factors. In addition, an oversupply of alternatives to new homes, such as rental properties, resale homes and foreclosures, depressed prices and reduced margins for the sale of new homes. Industry conditions had a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations in fiscal years 2007 through 2011. Further, we had substantially increased our inventory through fiscal 2006, which required significant cash outlays and which increased our price and margin exposure as we worked through this inventory. If the homebuilding industry experiences another significant or sustained downturn, it would materially adversely affect our business and results of operations in future years.

Our business is seasonal in nature and our quarterly operating results fluctuate.

Our quarterly operating results generally fluctuate by season. The construction of a customer’s home typically begins after signing the agreement of sale and can take six to nine months or more to complete. Weather-related problems, typically in the fall, winter and early spring, can delay starts or closings and increase costs and thus reduce profitability. In addition, delays in opening communities could have an adverse effect on our sales and revenues. Due to these factors, our quarterly operating results will likely continue to fluctuate.

Our success depends on the availability of suitable undeveloped land and improved lots at acceptable prices and our having sufficient liquidity to fund such investments.

Our success in developing land and in building and selling homes depends in part upon the continued availability of suitable undeveloped land and improved lots at acceptable prices. The homebuilding industry is highly competitive for land that is suitable for residential development and the availability of undeveloped land and improved lots for purchase at favorable prices depends on a number of factors outside of our control, including the risk of competitive overbidding on land and lots, geographical or topographical constraints and restrictive governmental regulation. Should suitable land opportunities become less available, our ability to implement our strategies and operational actions would be limited and the number of homes we may be able to build and sell would be reduced, which would reduce revenue and profits. In addition, our ability to make land purchases will depend upon us having sufficient liquidity to fund such purchases. We may be at a disadvantage in competing for land compared to others who have more substantial cash resources.

We rely on subcontractors to construct our homes and may incur costs or losses if these subcontractors fail to properly construct our homes or manage and pay their employees, or if products supplied to us by subcontractors are defective.

We engage subcontractors to perform the actual construction of our homes and, in some cases, to select and obtain building materials. Therefore, the timing and quality of our construction depends on the availability, skill, and cost of our subcontractors. Despite our quality control efforts, we may discover that our subcontractors failed to properly construct our homes or may use defective materials, which, if widely used in our business, could result in the need to perform extensive repairs to large numbers of homes. The occurrence of such events could require us to repair the homes in accordance with our standards and as required by law. The cost of complying with our warranty obligations may be significant if we are unable to recover the cost of repairs from subcontractors, materials suppliers and insurers. In addition, the cost of satisfying our legal obligations in these instances may be significant, and we may be unable to recover the cost of repair from subcontractors and insurers.

We also can suffer damage to our reputation, and may be exposed to possible liability, if subcontractors fail to comply with applicable laws, including laws involving actions or matters that are not within our control. When we learn about possibly improper practices by subcontractors, we attempt to cause the subcontractors to discontinue them and may terminate the use of such subcontractors. However, attempts at mitigation may not avoid claims against us relating to actions of or matters relating to our subcontractors that are out of our control. For example, although we do not have the ability to control what these independent subcontractors pay their own employees, or their own subcontractors, or the work rules they impose on such personnel, federal and state governmental agencies, including the U.S. National Labor Relations Board, have sought, and may in the future seek, to hold contracting parties like us responsible for subcontractors’ violations of wage and hour laws, or workers’ compensation, collective bargaining and/or other employment-related obligations related to subcontractors’ workforces. Governmental agency determinations or attempts by others to make us responsible for subcontractors’ labor practices or obligations, could create substantial adverse exposure for us in these types of situations even though not within our control.

Changes in economic and market conditions could result in the sale of homes at a loss or holding land in inventory longer than planned, the cost of which can be significant.

Land inventory risk can be substantial for homebuilders. We must continuously seek and make acquisitions of land for expansion into new markets and for replacement and expansion of land inventory within our current markets. We incur many costs even before we begin to build homes in a community. Depending on the stage of development of a land parcel when we acquire it, these may include costs of preparing land, finishing and entitling lots, installing roads, sewers, water systems and other utilities, taxes and other costs related to ownership of the land on which we plan to build homes. The market value of undeveloped land, buildable lots and housing inventories can fluctuate significantly as a result of changing economic and market conditions. In the event of significant changes in economic or market conditions, we may have to sell homes at a loss or hold land in inventory longer than planned. In the case of land options, we could choose not to exercise them, in which case we would write-off the value of these options. Inventory carrying costs can be significant and can result in losses in a poorly performing project or market. The assessment of communities for indication of impairment is performed quarterly. While we consider available information to determine what we believe to be our best estimates as of the reporting period, these estimates are subject to change in future reporting periods as facts and circumstances change. See Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation—Critical Accounting Policies.” If market conditions significantly worsen, additional inventory impairment losses and land option write-offs will likely be necessary.

We conduct a significant portion of our business in Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas and Virginia, and accordingly, regional factors affecting home sales and activities in these markets may have a large impact on our results of operations.

We presently conduct a significant portion of our business in Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas and Virginia, which subjects us to risks associated with the regional and local economies of these markets. Home prices and sales activities in these markets and in most of the other markets in which we operate have declined from time to time, particularly as a result of slow economic growth. These markets may also depend, to a degree, on certain sectors of the economy, and any declines in those sectors may impact home sales and activities in that region. For example, to the extent the oil and gas industries, which can be very volatile, are negatively impacted by declining commodity prices, climate change, legislation or other factors, it could result in reduced employment, or other negative economic consequences, which in turn could adversely impact our home sales and activities in Texas. Furthermore, precarious economic and budget situations at the state government level may adversely affect the market for our homes in the affected areas. Weather-related or other events impacting these markets could also negatively affect these markets as well as the other markets in which we operate. If home prices and sales activity decline in one or more of the markets in which we operate, our costs may not decline at all or at the same rate and the Company’s business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Increases in cancellations of agreements of sale could have an adverse effect on our business.

Our backlog reflects agreements of sale with our home buyers for homes that have not yet been delivered. We have received a deposit from our home buyer for each home, which is reflected in our backlog, and we generally have the right to retain the deposit if the home buyer does not complete the purchase. In some situations, however, a home buyer may cancel the agreement of sale and receive a complete or partial refund of the deposit for reasons such as state and local law, an inability to obtain mortgage financing at prevailing interest rates (including financing arranged or provided by us), an inability to sell the current home, or our inability to complete and deliver the new home within the specified time. At October 31, 2021, including unconsolidated joint ventures, we had a backlog of signed contracts for 5,535 homes with a sales value aggregating $2.2 billion. If mortgage financing becomes less accessible, or if economic conditions deteriorate, more home buyers may cancel their agreements of sale with us, which could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

Interest rates have been low compared to most historical periods over the last several years and may increase. Because almost all of our customers require mortgage financing, increases in interest rates or the decreased availability of mortgage financing could impair the affordability of our homes, lower demand for our products, limit our marketing effectiveness and limit our ability to fully realize our backlog.

Virtually all of our customers finance their acquisitions through lenders providing mortgage financing. Mortgage rates have generally remained low compared to most historical periods for the last several years, which has made the homes we sell more affordable. We cannot predict whether interest rates will continue to fall, remain low or rise. Increases in interest rates (or the perception that interest rates will rise, including as a result of government actions), increases in the costs to obtain mortgages or decreases in availability of mortgage financing could lower demand for new homes because of the increased monthly mortgage costs and cash required to close on mortgages to potential home buyers. Even if potential customers do not need financing, changes in interest rates and mortgage availability could make it harder for them to sell their existing homes to potential buyers who need financing. This could prevent or limit our ability to attract new customers as well as our ability to fully realize our backlog because our sales contracts generally include a financing contingency. Financing contingencies permit the customer to cancel his/her obligation in the event mortgage financing at prevailing interest rates, including financing arranged or provided by us, is unobtainable within the period specified in the contract. This contingency period is typically four to eight weeks following the date of execution of the sales contract. We believe that the availability of mortgage financing, including through federal government agencies or government-sponsored enterprises (such as Federal National Mortgage Association, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation and FHA/VA financing), is an important factor in marketing many of our homes. Any limitations or restrictions on the availability of mortgage financing (including due to any failure of lawmakers to agree on a budget or appropriation legislation to fund relevant programs or operations) could reduce our sales. Further, if we are unable to originate mortgages for any reason going forward, our customers may experience significant mortgage loan funding issues, which could have a material impact on our homebuilding business and our consolidated financial statements.

Inflation may adversely affect us by increasing costs beyond what we can recover through price increases.

Inflation can adversely affect us by increasing costs of land, materials and labor. In addition, inflation is often accompanied by higher interest rates. In an inflationary environment, such as the current economic environment, depending on homebuilding industry and other economic conditions, we may be unable to raise home prices enough to keep up with the rate of inflation, which would reduce our profit margins. Given the inflation rates in fiscal year 2021, we have experienced, and continue to experience, increases in the prices of land, labor and materials. Continued inflationary pressures could impact our profitability.

Increases in the after-tax costs of owning a home could prevent potential customers from buying our homes and adversely affect our business or financial results.

Significant expenses of owning a home, including mortgage interest expenses and real estate taxes, have historically been deductible expenses for an individual’s federal, and in some cases state, income taxes, subject to limitations under tax law and policy. The “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” which was signed into law in December 2017 includes provisions which impose significant limitations with respect to these income tax deductions. For instance, the annual deduction for real estate taxes and state and local income taxes (or sales taxes in lieu of income taxes) is now generally limited to $10,000. Proposed legislation that was passed by the House of Representatives in November 2021 (the “Build Back Better Act”) would generally raise this limit to $80,000 through 2030, but there can be no assurance that this proposed legislation will be enacted and, even if enacted, there may be changes with respect thereto (i.e., that would modify the limit) prior to enactment. Furthermore, through the end of 2025, the deduction for mortgage interest is generally only available with respect to the first $750,000 of a new mortgage and there is no longer a federal deduction for interest on home equity loans. In addition, if the federal government or a state government further changes its income tax laws to further eliminate or substantially limit these income tax deductions, the after-tax cost of owning a new home would further increase for many of our potential customers. The loss or reduction of these homeowner tax deductions that have historically been available has and could further reduce the perceived affordability of homeownership, and therefore the demand for and sales price of new homes, including ours, particularly in states with higher state income taxes or home prices, such as in California and New Jersey. In addition, increases in property tax rates or fees on developers by local governmental authorities, as experienced in response to reduced federal and state funding or to fund local initiatives, such as funding schools or road improvements, or increases in insurance premiums can adversely affect the ability of potential customers to obtain financing or their desire to purchase new homes, and can have an adverse impact on our business and financial results.

Further, existing and prospective regulatory and societal responses to climate change intended to reduce potential climate change impacts may increase the upfront costs of purchasing a home, costs to maintain the home and its systems, energy and utility costs and the cost to obtain homeowner and various hazard and flood insurance, or limit homeowners’ ability to obtain these insurance policies altogether. Although these items have had no material effect on our business, they could adversely affect our business in the future.

Mortgage investors could seek to have us buy back loans or compensate them for losses incurred on mortgages we have sold based on claims that we breached our limited representations or warranties.

Our financial services segment originates mortgages, primarily for our homebuilding customers. Substantially all of the mortgage loans originated are sold within a short period of time in the secondary mortgage market on a servicing released, nonrecourse basis, although we remain liable for certain limited representations, such as fraud, and warranties related to loan sales. Accordingly, mortgage investors have in the past and could in the future seek to have us buy back loans or compensate them for losses incurred on mortgages we have sold based on claims that we breached our limited representations or warranties. While we believe our reserves are adequate for known losses and projected repurchase requests, given the volatility in the mortgage industry and the uncertainty regarding the ultimate resolution of these claims, if either actual repurchases or the losses incurred resolving those repurchases exceed our expectations, additional expense may be incurred. We may have significant liabilities in respect of such claims in the future, which could exceed our reserves, and the impact of such claims on our results of operations could be material. Further, an increase in the default rate on the mortgages we originate may adversely affect our ability to sell mortgages or the pricing we receive upon the sale of mortgages.

We compete on several levels with homebuilders that may have greater sales and financial resources, which could hurt future earnings.

We compete not only for home buyers but also for desirable properties, financing, raw materials and skilled labor often within larger subdivisions designed, planned and developed by other homebuilders. Our competitors include other local, regional and national homebuilders, some of which have greater sales and financial resources or more established relationships with suppliers and subcontractors in the markets in which we operate. In addition, we compete with other housing alternatives, such as existing homes and rental housing. In the homebuilding industry, we compete primarily on the basis of reputation, price, location, design, quality, service and amenities. Our financial services segment competes with other mortgage providers, primarily on the basis of fees, interest rates and other features of mortgage loan products.

The competitive conditions in the homebuilding industry together with current market conditions have, and could continue to, result in: difficulty in acquiring suitable land at acceptable prices; increased selling incentives; lower sales; delays in construction; or impairment of our ability to implement our strategies and operational actions. Any of these problems could increase costs and/or lower profit margins.

Utility shortages and outages or rate fluctuations could have an adverse effect on our operations.

In prior years, the areas in which we operate in California have experienced power shortages, including periods without electrical power, as well as significant fluctuations in utility costs. We may incur additional costs and may not be able to complete construction on a timely basis if such power shortages and outages and utility rate fluctuations continue. Furthermore, power shortages and outages and rate fluctuations may adversely affect the regional economies in which we operate, which may reduce demand for our homes. Our operations may be adversely affected if further rate fluctuations and/or power shortages and outages occur in California, the Northeast or in our other markets.

Information technology failures and data security breaches could harm our business.

We use information technology, digital telecommunications and other computer resources to carry out important operational activities and to maintain our business records. In addition, we rely on the systems of third parties, such as third-party vendors. Our computer systems, including our backup systems, and those of the third-parties on whose systems we rely, are subject to damage or interruption from computer and telecommunications failures, computer viruses, power outages, security breaches (including through phishing attempts, data-theft and cyber-attack), ransomware attacks, usage errors by our associates and catastrophic events, such as fires, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. As part of our normal business activities, we collect and store certain personal identifying and confidential information relating to our homebuyers, employees, vendors and suppliers, and maintain operational and financial information related to our business. We may share some of this confidential information with our vendors. We rely on our vendors and third-party service providers to maintain effective cybersecurity measures to keep our information secure. If our computer systems and our backup systems, or those of the third-parties on whose systems we rely, are breached, compromised or damaged, or otherwise cease to function properly, we could suffer interruptions in our operations or the misappropriation of proprietary, personal identifying or confidential information, including information about our business partners and home buyers. Our or our vendors’ and third-party service providers’ failure to maintain the security of the data we are required to protect could result in damage to our reputation, financial obligations to third parties, fines, penalties, regulatory proceedings and private litigation with potentially large costs, and also in deterioration in customers’ confidence in us and other competitive disadvantages. 

Data protection and privacy laws have been enacted by the U.S. federal and state governments, including the California Consumer Privacy Act, which became effective on January 1, 2020, and the regulatory regime continues to evolve and is increasingly demanding. Many states have passed or are considering privacy and security legislation and there are ongoing discussions regarding a national privacy law. Variations in requirements across other states could present compliance challenges, as well as significant costs related to compliance.

We maintain cybersecurity insurance coverage and have implemented systems and processes intended to secure our information technology systems and prevent unauthorized access to or loss of sensitive, confidential and personal data, including through the use of encryption and authentication technologies. Additionally, we have increased our monitoring capabilities to enhance early detection and rapid response to potential security anomalies. These measures, which require ongoing monitoring and updating as technologies change and efforts to overcome security measures become increasingly sophisticated, are costly and may not be effective in preventing or mitigating significant negative occurrences or irregularities in our systems or those of third-parties on whose systems we rely. While, to date, we have not had a significant cybersecurity breach or attack that has a material impact on our business or results of operations, our efforts to maintain the security and integrity of our IT networks and related systems may not be effective and attempted security breaches or disruptions could be successful or damaging.

Negative publicity could adversely affect our reputation and our business, financial results and stock price.

Our reputation and brand are critical to our success. Unfavorable media related to our industry, company, brand, personnel, operations, business performance, or prospects may impact our stock price and the performance of our business, regardless of its accuracy or inaccuracy. The speed at which negative publicity is disseminated has increased dramatically through the use of electronic communication, including social media outlets, websites, “tweets”, and blogs. Our success in maintaining and expanding our brand image depends on our ability to adapt to this rapidly changing media environment. Adverse publicity or negative commentary from any media outlets could damage our reputation and reduce the demand for our homes, which would adversely affect our business.

Risks Related to Our Debt and Liquidity

Our high leverage may restrict our ability to operate, prevent us from fulfilling our obligations, and adversely affect our financial condition.

We have a significant amount of debt.

As of October 31, 2021, we had $9.3 million in aggregate outstanding face amount of letters of credit issued under various letter of credit and other credit facilities and agreements, certain of which were collateralized by $9.9 million of cash. Our fees for these letters of credit for the year ended October 31, 2021, which are based on both the used and unused portion of the facilities and agreements, were $0.2 million. We also had substantial contractual commitments and contingent obligations, including $223.8 million of performance bonds as of October 31, 2021. See Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Contractual Obligations.”

Our significant amount of debt could have important consequences. For example, it could:

Our ability to meet our debt service and other obligations will depend upon our future performance. We are engaged in businesses that are substantially affected by changes in economic cycles. Our revenues and earnings vary with the level of general economic activity in the markets we serve. Our businesses are also affected by customer sentiment and financial, political, business and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. The factors that affect our ability to generate cash can also affect our ability to raise additional funds for these purposes through the sale of equity or debt securities, the refinancing of debt or the sale of assets. Changes in prevailing interest rates may affect our ability to meet our debt service obligations to the extent we have any floating rate indebtedness. A higher interest rate on our debt service obligations could result in lower earnings or increased losses.

Our sources of liquidity are limited and may not be sufficient to meet our needs.

We are largely dependent on our current cash balance and future cash flows from operations (which may not be positive) to enable us to service our indebtedness, to cover our operating expenses and/or to fund our other liquidity needs. Cash provided by operating activities in fiscal 2021 and 2020 was $210.2 million and $292.8 million, respectively. Depending on the levels of our land purchases, we could generate positive or negative cash flow in future years. If the current improved market conditions in the homebuilding industry do not continue over the next several years, our cash flows could be insufficient to fund our obligations and support land purchases, and if we cannot buy additional land we would ultimately be unable to generate future revenues from the sale of houses. In addition, we will need to refinance all or a portion of our debt on or before maturity, which we may not be able to do on favorable terms or at all. If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to fund our debt service obligations or we are unable to refinance our indebtedness, we may be forced to reduce or delay investments and capital expenditures, sell assets, seek additional capital or restructure our indebtedness. These alternative measures may not be successful or, if successful, made on desirable terms and may not permit us to meet our debt service obligations. We have also entered into certain cash collateralized letters of credit agreements and facilities that require us to maintain specified amounts of cash in segregated accounts as collateral to support our letters of credit issued thereunder. If our available cash and capital resources are insufficient to meet our debt service and other obligations, we could face liquidity problems and might be required to dispose of material assets or operations to meet our debt service and other obligations. We may not be able to consummate those dispositions or the proceeds from the dispositions may not be permitted under the terms of our debt instruments to be used to service indebtedness or may not be adequate to meet any debt service obligations then due. For additional information about capital resources and liquidity, see Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Capital Resources and Liquidity.”

Our cash flows, liquidity and consolidated financial statements could be materially and adversely affected if we are unable to obtain letters of credit.

Our homebuilding operations often require us to obtain letters of credit. We have certain stand-alone letter of credit facilities and agreements pursuant to which letters of credit are issued. However, letters of credit may not be issued under our current senior secured revolving credit facility, and we may need additional letters of credit above the amounts provided under these stand-alone facilities and agreements. If we are unable to obtain such additional letters of credit as needed to operate our business, we would be adversely affected.

We may have difficulty in obtaining the additional financing required to operate and develop our business.

Our operations require significant amounts of cash, and we may be required to seek additional capital, whether from sales of debt or equity securities or borrowing additional money, for the future growth and development of our business. The terms and/or availability of additional capital is uncertain. Moreover, the agreements governing our outstanding debt instruments contain provisions that restrict the debt we may incur in the future and our ability to pay dividends on equity. If we are not successful in obtaining sufficient capital, it could reduce our sales and may hinder our future growth and results of operations. In addition, pledging substantially all of our assets to support our senior secured revolving credit facility and our senior secured notes may make it more difficult to raise additional financing in the future.

We could be adversely affected by a negative change in our credit rating.

Our ability to access capital on favorable terms is a key factor in our ability to service our indebtedness to cover our operating expenses and to fund our other liquidity needs. Negative rating actions by credit agencies, including downgrades, may make it more difficult and costly for us to access capital. Therefore, any downgrade by any of the principal credit agencies may exacerbate these difficulties. There can be no assurances that our credit ratings will not be downgraded in the future, whether as a result of deteriorating general economic conditions, a more protracted downturn in the housing industry, failure to successfully implement our operating strategy, the adverse impact on our results of operations or liquidity position of any of the above, or otherwise.

Restrictive covenants in our debt instruments may restrict our and certain of our subsidiaries’ ability to operate, and if our financial performance worsens, we may not be able to undertake transactions within the restrictions of our debt instruments.

The indentures governing our outstanding debt securities and our credit facilities impose certain restrictions on our and certain of our subsidiaries’ operations and activities. The most significant restrictions relate to debt incurrence (including non-recourse indebtedness), creation of liens, repayment of certain indebtedness prior to its respective stated maturity, sales of assets (including in certain land banking transactions), cash distributions, (including paying dividends on common and preferred stock), capital stock repurchases/exchanges, and investments by us and certain of our subsidiaries (including in joint ventures). Because of these restrictions, we could be prohibited from paying dividends on our common and preferred stock.

The restrictions in our debt instruments could prohibit or restrict our and certain of our subsidiaries’ activities, such as undertaking capital raising or restructuring activities or entering into other transactions. In addition, if we fail to comply with these restrictions or to make timely payments on this debt and other material indebtedness, an event of default could occur and our debt under these debt instruments could become due and payable prior to maturity. Any such event of default could lead to cross defaults under certain of our other debt or negatively impact other covenants. In any of these situations, we may be unable to amend the applicable instrument or obtain a waiver without significant additional cost, or at all, and we may be unable to obtain alternative financing. Any such situation could have a material adverse effect on the solvency of the Company.

The terms of our debt instruments allow us to incur additional indebtedness.

Under the terms of our indebtedness under our indentures and credit facilities, we have the ability, subject to our debt covenants, to incur additional amounts of debt, including secured debt. The incurrence of additional indebtedness could magnify the risks described above. In addition, certain obligations, such as standby letters of credit and performance bonds issued in the ordinary course of business, including those issued under our stand-alone letter of credit agreements and facilities, are not considered indebtedness under our debt instruments (and may be secured) and, therefore, are not subject to limits in our debt covenants.

Regulatory and Legal Risks

Homebuilders are subject to a number of federal, local, state, and foreign laws and regulations concerning the development of land and homebuilding, sales and customer financing processes and the protection of the environment, which can cause us to incur delays and costs associated with compliance and which can prohibit or restrict our activity in some regions or areas.

We are subject to extensive and complex laws and regulations that affect the development of land and homebuilding, sales and customer financing processes, including laws and regulations relating to zoning, density, accessibility, anti-discrimination, building standards and mortgage financing. These laws and regulations often provide broad discretion to the administering governmental authorities. This can delay or increase the cost of development or homebuilding. In addition, some state and local governments in markets where we operate have approved, and others may approve, slow-growth or no-growth initiatives that could negatively impact the availability of land and building opportunities within those areas. Approval of these initiatives could adversely affect our ability to build and sell homes in the affected markets and/or could require the satisfaction of additional administrative and regulatory requirements, which could result in slowing the progress or increasing the costs of our homebuilding operations in these markets. Any of the above delays or costs could have a negative effect on our future revenues and earnings.

 We also are subject to a variety of local, state, federal and foreign laws and regulations concerning protection of health and the environment, including those regulating the emission or discharge of materials into the environment, the management of storm water runoff at construction sites, the handling, use, storage and disposal of hazardous substances, impacts to wetlands and other sensitive environments, and the remediation of contamination at properties that we have owned or developed or currently own or are developing (“environmental laws”). The particular environmental laws that apply to a site may vary greatly according to the community site, for example, due to the community, the environmental conditions at or near the site, and the present and former uses of the site. These environmental laws may result in delays, may cause us to incur substantial compliance, remediation and/or other costs, and can prohibit or severely restrict development and homebuilding activity. In addition, noncompliance with these laws and regulations could result in fines and penalties, obligations to remediate, permit revocations or other sanctions; and contamination or other environmental conditions at or in the vicinity of our developments may result in claims against us for personal injury, property damage or other losses.

                   We anticipate that increasingly stringent requirements will continue to be imposed on developers and homebuilders in the future. In addition, some of these laws and regulations that significantly affect how certain properties may be developed are contentious, attract intense political attention, and may be subject to  significant changes over time. For example, regulations governing wetlands permitting under the federal Clean Water Act have been the subject of extensive rulemakings for many years, resulting in several major joint rulemakings by the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that have expanded and contracted the scope of wetlands subject to regulation; and such rulemakings have been the subject of many legal challenges, some of which remain pending. It is unclear how these and related developments, including at the state or local level, ultimately may affect the scope of regulated wetlands where we operate. Although we cannot reliably predict the extent of any effect these developments regarding wetlands, or any other requirements that may take effect may have on us, they could result in time-consuming and expensive compliance programs and in substantial expenditures, which could cause delays and increase our cost of operations. In addition, our ability to obtain or renew permits or approvals and the continued effectiveness of permits already granted or approvals already obtained is dependent upon many factors, some of which are beyond our control, such as changes in policies, rules and regulations and their interpretations and application.

                   In March 2013, we received a letter from the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) requesting information about our involvement in a housing redevelopment project in Newark, New Jersey that a Company entity undertook during the 1990s. We understand that the development is in the vicinity of a former lead smelter and that tests on soil samples from properties within the development conducted by the EPA showed elevated levels of lead. We also understand that the smelter ceased operations many years before the Company entity involved acquired the properties in the area and carried out the re-development project. We responded to the EPA’s request. In August 2013, we were notified that the EPA considers us a potentially responsible party (or “PRP”) with respect to the site, that the EPA will clean up the site, and that the EPA is proposing that we fund and/or contribute towards the cleanup of the contamination at the site. We began preliminary discussions with the EPA concerning a possible resolution but do not know the scope or extent of the Company’s obligations, if any, that may arise from the site and therefore cannot provide any assurance that this matter will not have a material impact on the Company. The EPA requested additional information in April 2014 and again in March 2017 and the Company responded to the information requests. On May 2, 2018 the EPA sent a letter to the Company entity demanding reimbursement for 100% of the EPA’s costs to clean-up the site in the amount of $2.7 million. The Company responded to the EPA’s demand letter on June 15, 2018 setting forth the Company’s defenses and expressing its willingness to enter into settlement negotiations. Two other PRPs identified by the EPA are now also in negotiations with the EPA and in preliminary negotiations with the Company regarding the site. In the course of negotiations, the EPA informed the Company that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ("NJDEP") has also incurred costs remediating part of the site. The EPA has since requested that the three PRPs present a joint settlement offer to the EPA. The Company and the other two PRPs are parties to a series of agreements tolling the statute of limitations on the EPA's claims for reimbursement, most recently extending the date until April 20, 2022. We believe that we have adequate reserves for this matter.

Legal claims not resolved in our favor, such as product liability litigation and warranty claims may be costly.

As discussed in Item 3 – “Legal Proceedings,” in the ordinary course of business we are involved in litigation from time to time, including with home owners associations, home buyers and other persons with whom we have relationships. For example, as a homebuilder, we are subject to construction defect and home warranty claims, including moisture intrusion and related claims, arising in the ordinary course of business. Such claims are common in the homebuilding industry and can be costly. For example, in the past we have received construction defect and home warranty claims associated with, and we were involved in a multidistrict litigation concerning, allegedly defective drywall manufactured in China that may have been responsible for noxious smells and accelerated corrosion of certain metals in certain homes we have constructed. We remediated certain homes in response to such claims and settled the litigation.

With regard to certain general liability exposures such as product liability claims, construction defect claims and related claims, assessment of claims and the related liability and reserve estimation process is highly judgmental and subject to a high degree of variability due to uncertainties such as trends in construction defect claims relative to our markets and the types of products we build, claim settlement patterns, insurance industry practices and legal interpretations, among others. Because of the high degree of judgment required in determining these estimated liability amounts, actual future costs could differ significantly from our currently estimated amounts. Furthermore, after claims are asserted for construction defects, it can be difficult to determine the extent to which assertions of such claims will expand geographically. For example, the Company has been a party to litigation in New Jersey concerning alleged defects in construction (see Item 3 – “Legal Proceedings” and Note 18 to our Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended October 31, 2021). In addition, the amount and scope of coverage offered by insurance companies is currently limited, and this coverage may be further restricted and become more costly. If we are not able to obtain adequate insurance against such claims, if the costs associated with such claims significantly exceed the amount of our insurance coverage, or if our insurers do not pay on claims under our policies (whether because of dispute, inability, or otherwise), we may experience losses that could hurt our financial results.

Our financial results could also be adversely affected if we were to experience an unusually high number of claims or unusually severe claims. Our insurance companies have the right to review our claims and claims history, and do so from time to time, and could decline to pay on such claims if such reviews determine the claims did not meet the terms for coverage. Additionally, we may need to significantly increase our construction defect and home warranty reserves as a result of insurance not being available for any of the reasons discussed above, such claims or the results of our annual actuarial study.

Risks Related to Our Organization and Structure

We conduct certain of our operations through unconsolidated joint ventures with independent third parties in which we do not have a controlling interest. These investments involve risks and are highly illiquid.

We currently operate through a number of unconsolidated homebuilding and land development joint ventures with independent third parties in which we do not have a controlling interest. At October 31, 2021, we had invested an aggregate of $60.9 million in these unconsolidated joint ventures, including net advances to these unconsolidated joint ventures of $2.2 million. In addition, as part of our strategy, we intend to continue to evaluate additional joint venture opportunities; however, we may be limited in pursuing all such desirable opportunities because the indentures governing our outstanding debt securities and our credit facilities impose certain restrictions, among others, on investments by us and certain of our subsidiaries (including in joint ventures).

These investments involve risks and are highly illiquid. There are a limited number of sources willing to provide acquisition, development and construction financing to land development and homebuilding joint ventures, and if market conditions become more challenging, it may be difficult or impossible to obtain financing for our joint ventures on commercially reasonable terms. In addition, we lack a controlling interest in these joint ventures and, therefore, are usually unable to require that our joint ventures sell assets or return invested capital, make additional capital contributions, or take any other action without the vote of at least one of our venture partners. Therefore, absent partner agreement, we will be unable to liquidate our joint venture investments to generate cash.

Our controlling stockholders are able to exercise significant influence over us.

The combined ownership of members of the Hovnanian family, including Ara K. Hovnanian, our chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer, through personal holdings, the limited partnership and the limited liability company established for members of Mr. Hovnanian’s family and family trusts of Class A and Class B common stock, enables them to exert significant control over us, including power to control the election of the Board of Directors and to approve matters presented to our stockholders. Such holdings represented approximately 55% of the votes that could be cast by the holders of our outstanding Class A and Class B common stock combined as of October 31, 2021. This concentration of ownership may also make some transactions, including mergers or other changes in control, more difficult or impossible without their support. Also, because of their combined voting power, circumstances may occur in which their interests could be in conflict with the interests of other stakeholders.

Our net operating loss carryforwards could be substantially limited if we experience an ownership change as defined in the Internal Revenue Code.

Based on past impairments and our current financial performance, we generated a federal net operating loss carryforward of $1.2 billion through the fiscal year ended October 31, 2021, and we may generate net operating loss carryforwards in future years.

Section 382 of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), contains rules that limit the ability of a company that undergoes an ownership change, which is generally any change in ownership of more than 50% of its stock over a three-year period, to utilize its net operating loss carryforwards and certain built-in losses recognized in years after the ownership change. These rules generally operate by focusing on ownership shifts among stockholders owning directly or indirectly 5% or more of the stock of a company and any change in ownership arising from a new issuance of stock by the company.

If we undergo an ownership change for purposes of Section 382 as a result of future transactions involving our stock, including purchases or sales of stock between 5% shareholders, our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and to recognize certain built-in losses would be subject to the limitations of Section 382. Depending on the resulting limitation, a significant portion of our net operating loss carryforwards could expire before we would be able to use them. A limitation imposed under Section 382 on our ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards could have a negative impact on our financial position and results of operations.

The value of our deferred tax assets is also dependent upon the tax rates expected to be in effect at the time the taxable income is expected to be generated. A decrease in enacted corporate tax rates in our major jurisdictions, especially the U.S. federal corporate rate, would decrease the value of our deferred tax assets, which could be material.

 Our Board of Directors has adopted, and our shareholders have approved, a shareholder rights plan (the “Rights Plan”) designed to preserve shareholder value and the value of certain tax assets primarily associated with net operating loss carryforwards and built-in losses under Section 382 of the Code. The Rights Plan is intended to act as a deterrent to any person or group acquiring 4.9% or more of our outstanding Class A common stock (any such person an “Acquiring Person”), without the approval of the Company’s Board of Directors. Subject to the terms, provisions and conditions of the Rights Plan, if and when they become exercisable, each right would entitle its holder to purchase from the Company one ten-thousandth of a share of the Company’s Series B Junior Preferred Stock for a specified purchase price (the “purchase price”). The rights will not be exercisable until the earlier of (i) 10 business days after a public announcement by us that a person or group has become an Acquiring Person and (ii) 10 business days after the commencement of a tender or exchange offer by a person or group for 4.9% of the Class A common stock (the “distribution date”). If issued, each fractional share of Series B Junior Preferred Stock would give the stockholder approximately the same dividend, voting and liquidation rights as does one share of the Company’s Class A common stock. However, prior to exercise, a right does not give its holder any rights as a stockholder of the Company, including without limitation any dividend, voting or liquidation rights. After the distribution date, each holder of a right, other than rights beneficially owned by the Acquiring Person (which will thereupon become void), will thereafter have the right to receive upon exercise of a right and payment of the purchase price, that number of shares of Class A common stock or Class B common stock, as the case may be, having a market value of two times the purchase price. After the distribution date, our Board of Directors may exchange the rights (other than rights owned by an Acquiring Person which will have become void), in whole or in part, at an exchange ratio of one share of common stock, or a fractional share of Series B Junior Preferred Stock (or of a share of a similar class or series of Hovnanian’s preferred stock having similar rights, preferences and privileges) of equivalent value, per right (subject to adjustment).

In addition, our Restated Certificate of Incorporation restricts certain transfers of our common stock in order to preserve the tax treatment of our net operating loss carryforwards and built-in losses under Section 382 of the Code. Subject to certain exceptions pertaining to pre-existing 5% stockholders and Class B stockholders, the transfer restrictions in our Restated Certificate of Incorporation generally restrict any direct or indirect transfer (such as transfers of the Company’s stock that result from the transfer of interests in other entities that own the Company’s stock) if the effect would be to: (i) increase the direct or indirect ownership of the Company’s stock by any person (or public group) from less than 5% to 5% or more of the Company’s stock; (ii) increase the percentage of the Company’s stock owned directly or indirectly by a person (or public group) owning or deemed to own 5% or more of the Company’s stock; or (iii) create a new “public group” (as defined in the applicable United States Treasury regulations).

We could be adversely impacted by the loss of key management personnel or if we fail to attract qualified personnel.

To a significant degree, our future success depends on the efforts of our senior management, many of whom have been with the Company for a significant number of years, and our ability to attract qualified personnel. Our operations could be adversely affected if key members of our senior management leave the Company or if we cannot attract qualified personnel to manage growth in our business.

ITEM 1B

UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2

PROPERTIES

We rent approximately 63,000 square feet of office space in the Northeast for our corporate headquarters. We own 215,000 square feet of office and warehouse space throughout the Midwest. We lease approximately 314,000 square feet of space for our segments located in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest and West.

ITEM 3

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The information required with respect to this item can be found under "Commitments and Contingent Liabilities" in Note 18 to our Consolidated Financial Statements found elsewhere in this annual report, which is incorporated by reference into this Item 3. 

ITEM 4

MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Information on executive officers of the registrant is incorporated herein from Part III, Item 10.

Part II

ITEM 5

MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS, AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Our Class A Common Stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “HOV” and was held by 292 stockholders of record at December 10, 2021. There is no established public trading market for our Class B Common Stock, which was held by 180 stockholders of record at December 10, 2021. If a shareholder desires to sell shares of Class B Common Stock (other than to Permitted Transferees (as defined in the Company’s amended Certificate of Incorporation)), such stock must be converted into shares of Class A Common Stock at a one to one conversion rate. 

Recent Sales of Unregistered Equity Securities

None.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

No shares of our Class A Common Stock or Class B Common Stock were purchased by or on behalf of the Company or any affiliated purchaser during the fiscal fourth quarter of 2021. The maximum number of shares that may yet be purchased under the Company’s repurchase plans or programs is 22 thousand.

ITEM 6 Reserved

ITEM 7

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (“HEI”) conducts all of its homebuilding and financial services operations through its subsidiaries (references herein to the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” refer to HEI and its consolidated subsidiaries and should be understood to reflect the consolidated business of HEI’s subsidiaries).

Key Performance Indicators

The following key performance indicators are commonly used in the homebuilding industry and by management as a means to better understand our operating performance and trends affecting our business, and compare our performance with the performance of other homebuilders. We believe these key performance indicators also provide useful information to investors in analyzing our performance:

Overview

Market Conditions and Operating Results

The demand for new and existing homes is dependent on a variety of demographic and economic factors, including job and wage growth, household formation, consumer confidence, mortgage financing, interest rates, inflation and overall housing affordability. In general, at the start of fiscal year 2020, factors including rising levels of household formation, a constrained supply of new and used homes, wage growth, strong employment conditions and mortgage rates that continue to be low by historical standards were contributing to improving conditions for new home sales.

In March 2020, as a result of the initial impact of COVID-19, we experienced adverse business conditions, including a slowdown in customer traffic and sales pace and an increase in cancellations. However, beginning in May 2020, the homebuilding market rapidly improved, due to what we believe is a combination of factors including low interest rates, low inventory levels of existing homes and a general desire for more indoor and outdoor space. During the third quarter and continuing through the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020, we returned to our normal activities with respect to land purchases, land development and resuming the construction of unsold homes. As a result, our operating metrics improved significantly in fiscal 2020 as compared to fiscal 2019, and improved even further in fiscal 2021, as described below.

Our cash position allowed us to spend $698.3 million on land purchases and land development and to repurchase $180.9 million of senior secured notes during fiscal 2021, and still have total liquidity of $380.9 million, including $246.0 million of homebuilding cash and cash equivalents as of October 31, 2021 and $125.0 million of borrowing capacity under our senior secured revolving credit facility as of October 31, 2021. 

Additional results for the year ended October 31, 2021 were as follows:

● For the year ended October 31, 2021, sale of homes revenues increased 18.7% as compared to the prior year, as a result of a 9.1% increase in deliveries, from the sustained strong homebuilding market and high demand for new home construction that began in fiscal 2020, along with an increase in average sales price.

● Gross margin percentage increased from 14.7% for the year ended October 31, 2020 to 18.6% for the year ended October 31, 2021, and gross margin percentage, before cost of sales interest expense and land charges, increased from 18.4% for the year ended October 31, 2020 to 21.8% for the year ended October 31, 2021. The increases were primarily due to increases in home prices in virtually all of our markets during fiscal 2021 as a result of the strong housing market.

● Selling, general and administrative costs (including corporate general and administrative expenses) increased $34.8 million for the year ended October 31, 2021 as compared to the prior year. The increase was primarily attributed to a change in volume of our unconsolidated joint venture deliveries, and an increase in compensation expense. The increase in compensation expense was mostly attributed to our long-term incentive programs now forecasted to achieve above target metrics as a result of improved operating results and our higher stock price. Despite the increase in dollars, as a percentage of total revenue, such costs decreased to 9.9% for the year ended October 31, 2021 compared to 10.3% for the year ended October 31, 2020.

● Pre-tax income increased to $189.9 million for the year ended October 31, 2021 from pre-tax income of $55.4 million for the year ended October 31, 2020. Net income increased to $607.8 million for the year ended October 31, 2021 (which includes the benefit from the reduction in our deferred tax asset valuation allowance) from net income of $50.9 million for the year ended October 31, 2020. Earnings per share, basic and diluted, increased to $87.50 and $85.86, respectively, for the year ended October 31, 2021, including the benefit from the reduction in our deferred tax asset valuation allowance, compared to earnings per share, basic and diluted of $7.48 and $7.03, respectively, for the year ended October 31, 2020.

● Net contracts per average active selling community increased to 55.3 for the year ended October 31, 2021 compared to 54.3 in the prior year. This strong absorption pace resulted in our average active selling communities at October 31, 2021 decreasing by 14.8% compared to  October 31, 2020.

● Net contracts decreased 13.4% for the year ended October 31, 2021, compared to the prior year, as a result of the decrease in average active selling communities.

● Contract backlog decreased from 3,402 homes at October 31, 2020 to 3,247 homes at October 31, 2021. However, the dollar value of contract backlog increased to $1.6 billion in connection with the increase in home prices discussed above, representing a 15.4% increase in dollar value compared to the prior year.

Despite the overall improvement during fiscal 2021, labor and material shortages that were initially due to the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened and continued despite resumption of pre-pandemic levels of economic activity while the full magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects remain unknown. We may experience material declines in our net contracts, deliveries, revenues, cash flow and/or profitability during fiscal 2022 and beyond, compared to the corresponding prior-year periods. In addition, if conditions in the overall housing market or in a specific market worsen in the future beyond our current expectations, if future changes in our business strategy significantly affect any key assumptions used in our projections of future cash flows, or if there are material changes in any of the other items we consider in assessing recoverability, we may recognize charges in future periods for inventory impairments related to our current inventory assets or other reorganization activities. Any such charges could be material to our consolidated financial statements.

Critical Accounting Policies

Management believes that the following critical accounting policies require its most significant judgments and estimates used in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements:

Income Recognition from Mortgage Loans - Our Financial Services segment originates mortgages, primarily for our homebuilding customers. We use mandatory investor commitments and forward sales of mortgage backed securities (“MBS”) to hedge our mortgage-related interest rate exposure on agency and government loans.

We elected the fair value option for our mortgage loans held for sale in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 825, “Financial Instruments,” which permits us to measure our loans held for sale at fair value. Management believes that the election of the fair value option for loans held for sale improves financial reporting by mitigating volatility in reported earnings caused by measuring the fair value of the loans and the derivative instruments used to economically hedge them without having to apply complex hedge accounting provisions.

Substantially all of the mortgage loans originated are sold within a short period of time in the secondary mortgage market on a servicing released, nonrecourse basis, although the Company remains liable for certain limited representations, such as fraud, and warranties related to loan sales. Mortgage investors could seek to have us buy back loans or compensate them for losses incurred on mortgages we have sold based on claims that we breached our limited representations and warranties. We have established reserves for probable losses. While we believe these reserves are adequate for known losses and projected repurchase requests, given the volatility in the mortgage industry and the uncertainty regarding the ultimate resolution of these claims, if either actual repurchases or the losses incurred resolving those repurchases exceed our expectations, additional expense may be incurred.  

Inventories - Inventories consist of land, land development, home construction costs, capitalized interest, construction overhead and property taxes. Construction costs are accumulated during the period of construction and charged to cost of sales under specific identification methods. Land, land development and common facility costs are allocated based on buildable acres to product types within each community, then charged to cost of sales equally based upon the number of homes to be constructed in each product type.

We record inventories in our consolidated balance sheets at cost unless the inventory is determined to be impaired, in which case the inventory is written down to its fair value. Our inventories consist of the following three components: (1) sold and unsold homes and lots under development, which includes all construction, land, capitalized interest and land development costs related to started homes and land under development in our active communities; (2) land and land options held for future development or sale, which includes all costs related to land in our communities in planning or mothballed communities; and (3) consolidated inventory not owned, which includes all costs related to variable interest entities and other options, which consists primarily of model homes financed with an investor and inventory related to land banking arrangements accounted for as financings.

We decide to mothball (or stop development on) certain communities when we determine that the current performance does not justify further investment at the time. When we decide to mothball a community, the inventory is reclassified on our Consolidated Balance Sheets from “Sold and unsold homes and lots under development” to “Land and land options held for future development or sale.” As of October 31, 2021, the net book value associated with our 6 mothballed communities was $4.3 million, net of impairment charges recorded in prior periods of $57.5 million. We regularly review communities to determine if mothballing is appropriate. During fiscal 2021, we did not mothball any additional communities, but we sold four previously mothballed communities and we re-activated two previously mothballed communities and portions of two previously mothballed communities.

We sell and lease back certain of our model homes with the right to participate in the potential profit when each home is sold to a third party at the end of the respective lease. As a result of our continued involvement, for accounting purposes in accordance with ASC 606-10-55-68, these sale and leaseback transactions are considered a financing rather than a sale. Therefore, for purposes of our Consolidated Balance Sheets, at October 31, 2021, inventory of $32.5 million was recorded to “Consolidated inventory not owned,” with a corresponding amount of $31.5 million recorded to “Liabilities from inventory not owned.”

We have land banking arrangements, whereby we sell our land parcels to the land banker and they provide us an option to purchase back finished lots on a quarterly basis. Because of our options to repurchase these parcels, for accounting purposes, in accordance with ASC 606-10-55-70, these transactions are considered financings rather than sales. For purposes of our Consolidated Balance Sheets, at October 31, 2021, inventory of $66.2 million was recorded as “Consolidated inventory not owned,” with a corresponding amount of $31.3 million recorded to “Liabilities from inventory not owned” for the amount of net cash received from the transactions.

The recoverability of inventories and other long-lived assets is assessed in accordance with the provisions of ASC 360-10, “Property, Plant and Equipment − Overall” (“ASC 360-10”). ASC 360-10 requires long-lived assets, including inventories, held for development to be evaluated for impairment based on undiscounted future cash flows of the assets at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows. As such, we evaluate inventories for impairment at the individual community level, the lowest level of discrete cash flows that we measure.

We evaluate inventories of communities under development and held for future development for impairment when indicators of potential impairment are present. Indicators of impairment include, but are not limited to, decreases in local housing market values, decreases in gross margins or sales absorption rates, decreases in net sales prices (base sales price net of sales incentives), or actual or projected operating or cash flow losses. The assessment of communities for indication of impairment is performed quarterly. As part of this process, we prepare detailed budgets for all of our communities at least semi-annually and identify those communities with a projected operating loss. For those communities with projected losses, we estimate the remaining undiscounted future cash flows and compare those to the carrying value of the community, to determine if the carrying value of the asset is recoverable.

The projected operating profits, losses, or cash flows of each community can be significantly impacted by our estimates of the following:

These estimates are dependent upon specific market conditions for each community. While we consider available information to determine what we believe to be our best estimates as of the end of a quarterly reporting period, these estimates are subject to change in future reporting periods as facts and circumstances change. Local market-specific conditions that may impact our estimates for a community include:

These and other local market-specific conditions that may be present are considered by management in preparing projection assumptions for each community. The sales objectives can differ between our communities, even within a given market. For example, facts and circumstances in a given community may lead us to price our homes with the objective of yielding a higher sales absorption pace, while facts and circumstances in another community may lead us to price our homes to minimize deterioration in our gross margins, although it may result in a slower sales absorption pace. In addition, the key assumptions included in our estimate of future undiscounted cash flows may be interrelated. For example, a decrease in estimated base sales price or an increase in homes sales incentives may result in a corresponding increase in sales absorption pace. Additionally, a decrease in the average sales price of homes to be sold and closed in future reporting periods for one community that has not been generating what management believes to be an adequate sales absorption pace may impact the estimated cash flow assumptions of a nearby community. Changes in our key assumptions, including estimated construction and development costs, absorption pace and selling strategies, could materially impact future cash flow and fair-value estimates. Due to the number of possible scenarios that would result from various changes in these factors, we do not believe it is possible to develop a sensitivity analysis with a level of precision that would be meaningful to an investor.

If the undiscounted cash flows are more than the carrying value of the community, then the carrying amount is recoverable, and no impairment adjustment is required. However, if the undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying amount, then the community is deemed impaired and is written down to its fair value. We determine the estimated fair value of each community by determining the present value of its estimated future cash flows at a discount rate commensurate with the risk of the respective community, or in limited circumstances, prices for land in recent comparable sale transactions, market analysis studies, which include the estimated price a willing buyer would pay for the land (other than in a forced liquidation sale), and recent bona fide offers received from outside third parties. Our discount rates used for all impairments recorded from October 31, 2019 to October 31, 2021 ranged from 17.3% to 19.3%. The estimated future cash flow assumptions are virtually the same for both our recoverability and fair value assessments. Should the estimates or expectations used in determining estimated cash flows or fair value, including discount rates, decrease or differ from current estimates in the future, we may be required to recognize additional impairments related to current and future communities. The impairment of a community is allocated to each lot on a relative fair value basis.

From time to time, we write off deposits and approval, engineering and capitalized interest costs when we determine that it is no longer probable that we will exercise options to buy land in specific locations or when we redesign communities and/or abandon certain engineering costs. In deciding not to exercise a land option, we take into consideration changes in market conditions, the timing of required land takedowns, the willingness of land sellers to modify terms of the land option contract (including timing of land takedowns), and the availability and best use of our capital, among other factors. The write-off is recorded in the period it is deemed not probable that the optioned property will be acquired. In certain instances, we have been able to recover deposits and other pre-acquisition costs that were previously written off. These recoveries have not been significant in comparison to the total costs written off.

Inventories held for sale are land parcels ready for sale in their current condition, where we have decided not to build homes but are instead actively marketing for sale. These land parcels represented $2.0 million of our total inventories at  October 31, 2020, and are reported at the lower of carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell. There were no inventories held for sale at October 31, 2021. In determining fair value for land held for sale, management considers, among other things, prices for land in recent comparable sale transactions, market analysis studies, which include the estimated price a willing buyer would pay for the land (other than in a forced liquidation sale) and recent bona fide offers received from outside third parties.

Unconsolidated Homebuilding and Land Development Joint Ventures - Investments in unconsolidated homebuilding and land development joint ventures are accounted for under the equity method of accounting. Under the equity method, we recognize our proportionate share of earnings and losses earned by the joint venture upon the delivery of lots or homes to third parties. Our ownership interests in the joint ventures vary but our voting interests are generally 50% or less. In determining whether or not we must consolidate joint ventures where we are the managing member of the joint venture, we assess whether the other partners have specific rights to overcome the presumption of control by us as the manager of the joint venture. In most cases, the presumption is overcome because the joint venture agreements require that both partners agree on establishing the significant operating and capital decisions of the partnership, including budgets, in the ordinary course of business. The evaluation of whether or not we control a venture can require significant judgment. In accordance with ASC 323-10, “Investments - Equity Method and Joint Ventures – Overall,” we assess our investments in unconsolidated joint ventures for recoverability, and if it is determined that a loss in value of the investment below its carrying amount is other than temporary, we write down the investment to its fair value. We evaluate our equity investments for impairment based on the joint venture’s projected cash flows. This process requires significant management judgment and estimates. During fiscal 2021 and 2020, we did not write down any of our unconsolidated joint venture investments.

Warranty Costs and Construction Defect Reserves - We accrue for warranty costs that are covered under our existing general liability and construction defect policy as part of our general liability insurance deductible. This accrual is expensed as selling, general, and administrative costs. For homes delivered in fiscal 2021 and 2020, our deductible under our general liability insurance was a $20 million aggregate for construction defect and warranty claims. For bodily injury claims, our deductible per occurrence in fiscal 2021 and 2020 was $0.25 million, up to a $5 million limit. Our aggregate retention for construction defect, warranty and bodily injury claims was $20 million for fiscal 2021 and 2020. We do not have a deductible on our worker's compensation insurance. Reserves for estimated losses for construction defects, warranty and bodily injury claims have been established using the assistance of a third-party actuary. We engage a third-party actuary that uses our historical warranty and construction defect data to assist our management in estimating our unpaid claims, claim adjustment expenses and incurred but not reported claims reserves for the risks that we are assuming under the general liability and construction defect programs. The estimates include provisions for inflation, claims handling and legal fees. These estimates are subject to a high degree of variability due to uncertainties such as trends in construction defect claims relative to our markets and the types of products we build, claim settlement patterns, insurance industry practices and legal interpretations, among others. Because of the high degree of judgment required in determining these estimated liability amounts, actual future costs could differ significantly from our currently estimated amounts. In addition, we establish a warranty accrual for lower cost-related issues to cover home repairs, community amenities and land development infrastructure that are not covered under our general liability and construction defect policy. We accrue an estimate for these warranty costs as part of cost of sales at the time each home is closed and title and possession have been transferred to the homebuyer. See Note 16 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information on the amount of warranty costs recognized in cost of goods sold and administrative expenses.

Deferred Income Taxes - Deferred income taxes are provided for temporary differences between amounts recorded for financial reporting and for income tax purposes. If the combination of future years’ income (or loss) combined with the reversal of the timing differences results in a loss, such losses can be carried forward to future years to recover the deferred tax assets. The Company evaluates all significant available positive and negative evidence, including the existence of losses in recent years and its forecast of future taxable income, in assessing the need for a valuation allowance. The underlying assumptions the Company uses in forecasting future taxable income require significant judgment and take into account the Company's recent performance. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent on the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which temporary differences or carry-forwards are deductible or creditable. A valuation allowance is provided to offset deferred tax assets if, based upon the available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized.

In evaluating the exposures associated with our various tax filing positions, we recognize tax liabilities in accordance with ASC 740-10, for more likely than not exposures. We re-evaluate the exposures associated with our tax positions on a quarterly basis. This evaluation is based on factors such as changes in facts or circumstances, changes in tax law, new audit activity by taxing authorities, and effectively settled issues. Determining whether an uncertain tax position is effectively settled requires judgment. Such a change in recognition or measurement would result in the recognition of a tax benefit or an additional charge to the tax provision. A number of years may elapse before a particular matter for which we have established a liability is audited and fully resolved or clarified. We adjust our liability for unrecognized tax benefits and income tax provision in the period in which an uncertain tax position is effectively settled, or the statute of limitations expires for the relevant taxing authority to examine the tax position or when more information becomes available. Due to the complexity of some of these uncertainties, the ultimate resolution may result in a liability that is materially different from our current estimate. Any such changes will be reflected as increases or decreases to income tax expense in the period in which they are determined.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 3 to the Consolidated Financial Statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Capital Resources and Liquidity

Our operations consist primarily of residential housing development and sales in the Northeast (New Jersey and Pennsylvania), the Mid-Atlantic (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C. and West Virginia), the Midwest (Illinois and Ohio), the Southeast (Florida, Georgia and South Carolina), the Southwest (Arizona and Texas) and the West (California). In addition, we provide certain financial services to our homebuilding customers.

We have historically funded our homebuilding and financial services operations with cash flows from operating activities, borrowings under our credit facilities, the issuance of new debt and equity securities and other financing activities. Due to covenant restrictions in our debt instruments, we are currently limited primarily in the amount of secured debt we can incur that does not qualify as refinancing indebtedness, even if market conditions, including then-current market available interest rates (in recent years, we have not been able to access the traditional capital and bank lending markets at competitive interest rates due to our highly leveraged capital structure), would otherwise be favorable, which could also impact our ability to grow our business. 

Operating, Investing and Financing Activities – Overview

Our total liquidity at October 31, 2021 was $380.9 million, including $246.0 million in homebuilding cash and cash equivalents and $125.0 million of borrowing capacity under our senior secured revolving credit facility, after using $180.9 million for the full redemption of our 10.0% Senior Secured Notes due 2022 in the third quarter of fiscal 2021 and our 10.5% Senior Secured Notes due 2024 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. This was above our target liquidity range of $170.0 to $245.0 million. The unprecedented public health and governmental efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have created significant uncertainty as to general economic and housing market conditions for fiscal 2022 and beyond. We believe that these sources of cash together with available borrowings on our senior secured revolving credit facility will be sufficient through fiscal 2022 to finance our working capital requirements. 

We spent $698.3 million on land and land development during fiscal 2021. After considering this land and land development and all other operating activities, including revenue received from deliveries, we had $210.2 million in cash provided from operations. During fiscal 2021, cash provided by investing activities was $9.0 million, primarily due to distributions from existing unconsolidated joint ventures, partially offset by an investment in a new unconsolidated joint venture. Cash used in financing activities was $217.3 million during fiscal 2021, which was primarily due to the full redemption of certain of our senior secured debt, as described above, along with net payments for nonrecourse mortgage financings, partially offset by net proceeds on our mortgage warehouse lines of credit. We intend to continue to use nonrecourse mortgage financings, model sale leaseback, joint ventures, and, subject to covenant restrictions in our debt instruments, land banking programs as our business needs dictate.

Our cash uses during the years ended October 31, 2021 and 2020 were for operating expenses, land purchases, land deposits, land development, construction spending, state income taxes, interest payments, financing transaction costs, debt repurchases, litigation matters and investments in unconsolidated joint ventures. During these periods, we provided for our cash requirements from available cash on hand, housing and land sales, financing transactions, model sale leasebacks, land banking transactions, unconsolidated joint ventures, financial service revenues and other revenues.

Our net income (loss) historically does not approximate cash flow from operating activities. The difference between net income (loss) and cash flow from operating activities is primarily caused by changes in inventory levels together with changes in receivables, prepaid and other assets, mortgage loans held for sale, interest and other accrued liabilities, deferred income taxes, accounts payable and other liabilities, noncash charges relating to depreciation and stock compensation awards and impairment losses for inventory. When we are expanding our operations, inventory levels, prepaids and other assets increase causing cash flow from operating activities to decrease. Certain liabilities also increase as operations expand and partially offset the negative effect on cash flow from operations caused by the increase in inventory levels, prepaids and other assets. Similarly, as our mortgage operations expand, net income from these operations increases, but for cash flow purposes net income is partially offset by the net change in mortgage assets and liabilities. The opposite is true as our investment in new land purchases and development of new communities decrease, causing us to generate positive cash flow from operations. 

See “Inventory Activities” below for a detailed discussion of our inventory position.

Debt Transactions

Senior notes and credit facilities balances as of October 31, 2021 and October 31, 2020, were as follows:

(1) $26.0 million of 8.0% Senior Notes due 2027 (the "8.0% 2027 Notes") are owned by a wholly-owned consolidated subsidiary of HEI. Therefore, in accordance with GAAP, such notes are not reflected on the Consolidated Balance Sheets of HEI. On November 1, 2019, the maturity of the 8.0% 2027 Notes was extended to November 1, 2027.

(2) At October 31, 2021, provides for up to $125.0 million in aggregate amount of senior secured first lien revolving loans. Availability thereunder will terminate on December 28, 2022.

Except for K. Hovnanian, the issuer of the notes and borrower under the Credit Facilities (as defined below), our home mortgage subsidiaries, certain of our title insurance subsidiaries, joint ventures and subsidiaries holding interests in our joint ventures, we and each of our subsidiaries are guarantors of the Credit Facilities, the senior secured notes and senior notes outstanding at October 31, 2021 (except for the 8.0% 2027 Notes which are not guaranteed by K. Hovnanian at Sunrise Trail III, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company) (collectively, the “Notes Guarantors”).

The credit agreements governing the Credit Facilities and the indentures governing the senior secured and senior notes (together, the “Debt Instruments”) outstanding at October 31, 2021 do not contain any financial maintenance covenants, but do contain restrictive covenants that limit, among other things, the ability of HEI and certain of its subsidiaries, including K. Hovnanian, to incur additional indebtedness (other than non-recourse indebtedness, certain permitted indebtedness and refinancing indebtedness), pay dividends and make distributions on common and preferred stock, repay certain indebtedness prior to its respective stated maturity, repurchase (including through exchanges) common and preferred stock, make other restricted payments (including investments), sell certain assets (including in certain land banking transactions), incur liens, consolidate, merge, sell or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of their assets and enter into certain transactions with affiliates. The Debt Instruments also contain customary events of default which would permit the lenders or holders thereof to exercise remedies with respect to the collateral (as applicable), declare the loans made under the Unsecured Term Loan Facility (defined below) (the “Unsecured Term Loans”), loans made under the Secured Term Loan Facility (defined below) (the “Secured Term Loans”) and loans made under the Secured Credit Agreement (as defined below) (the “Secured Revolving Loans”) or notes to be immediately due and payable if not cured within applicable grace periods, including the failure to make timely payments on the Unsecured Term Loans, Secured Term Loans, Secured Revolving Loans or notes or other material indebtedness, cross default to other material indebtedness, the failure to comply with agreements and covenants and specified events of bankruptcy and insolvency, with respect to the Unsecured Term Loans, Secured Term Loans and Secured Revolving Loans, material inaccuracy of representations and warranties and with respect to the Unsecured Term Loans, Secured Term Loans and Secured Revolving Loans, a change of control, and, with respect to the Secured Term Loans, Secured Revolving Loans and senior secured notes, the failure of the documents granting security for the obligations under the secured Debt Instruments to be in full force and effect, and the failure of the liens on any material portion of the collateral securing the obligations under the secured Debt Instruments to be valid and perfected. As of October 31, 2021, we believe we were in compliance with the covenants of the Debt Instruments.

If our consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio is less than 2.0 to 1.0, as defined in the applicable Debt Instrument, we are restricted from making certain payments and dividends (in such case our secured debt leverage ratio must also be less than 4.0 to 1.0), and from incurring indebtedness other than certain permitted indebtedness, refinancing indebtedness and nonrecourse indebtedness. As of October 31, 2021, as a result of our improved operating results, our fixed coverage ratio is above 2.0 to 1.0 and our secured debt leverage ratio is below 4.0 to 1.0, therefore we are no longer restricted from paying dividends. As such, on December 3, 2021, our Board of Directors authorized a dividend payment to preferred shareholders of record on January 1, 2022 and which will be paid on January 15, 2022.

Under the terms of our Debt Instruments, we have the right to make certain redemptions and prepayments and, depending on market conditions, our strategic priorities and covenant restrictions, may do so from time to time. We also continue to actively analyze and evaluate our capital structure and explore transactions to simplify our capital structure and to strengthen our balance sheet, including those that reduce leverage, interest rates and/or extend maturities, and will seek to do so with the right opportunity. We may also continue to make debt purchases and/or exchanges for debt or equity from time to time through tender offers, exchange offers, redemptions, open market purchases, private transactions, or otherwise, or seek to raise additional debt or equity capital, depending on market conditions and covenant restrictions.

Any liquidity-enhancing or other capital raising or refinancing transaction will depend on identifying counterparties, negotiation of documentation and applicable closing conditions and any required approvals. Due to covenant restrictions in our Debt Instruments, we are currently limited in the amount of debt we can incur that does not qualify as refinancing indebtedness, even if market conditions, including then-current market available interest rates (in recent years, we have not been able to access the traditional capital and bank lending markets at competitive interest rates due to our highly leveraged capital structure), would otherwise be favorable, which could also impact our ability to grow our business.

See Note 9 to the Consolidated Financial Statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a further discussion of K. Hovnanian’s Credit Facilities, senior secured notes and senior notes, including information with respect to the collateral securing our Debt Instruments.

Mortgages and Notes Payable

We have nonrecourse mortgage loans for certain communities totaling $125.1 million and $135.1 million (net of debt issuance costs) at October 31, 2021 and October 31, 2020, respectively, which are secured by the related real property, including any improvements, with an aggregate book value of $448.5 million and $368.1 million, respectively. The weighted-average interest rate on these obligations was 4.4% and 6.4% at October 31, 2021 and October 31, 2020, respectively, and the mortgage loan payments on each community primarily correspond to home deliveries.

Our wholly owned mortgage banking subsidiary, K. Hovnanian American Mortgage, LLC (“K. Hovnanian Mortgage”), originates mortgage loans primarily from the sale of our homes. Such mortgage loans and related servicing rights are sold in the secondary mortgage market within a short period of time. In certain instances, we retain the servicing rights for a small amount of loans. K. Hovnanian Mortgage finances the origination of mortgage loans through various master repurchase agreements, which are recorded in “Financial services” liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The loans are secured by the mortgages held for sale and are repaid when we sell the underlying mortgage loans to permanent investors. As of October 31, 2021 and 2020, we had an aggregate of $134.9 million and $87.2 million, respectively, outstanding under several of K. Hovnanian Mortgage’s short-term borrowing facilities.

 See Note 8 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for a discussion of these agreements and facilities.

Equity

On July 3, 2001, our Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase program to purchase up to 0.2 million shares of Class A Common Stock. We did not repurchase any shares under this program during fiscal 2021 or 2020. As of October 31, 2021, the maximum number of shares of Class A Common Stock that may yet be purchased under this program is 22 thousand. (See Part II, Item 5 for information on equity purchases).  

On July 12, 2005, we issued 5,600 shares of 7.625% Series A Preferred Stock, with a liquidation preference of $25,000 per share. Dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock are not cumulative and are payable at an annual rate of 7.625%. The Series A Preferred Stock is not convertible into the Company’s common stock and is redeemable in whole or in part at our option at the liquidation preference of the shares. The Series A Preferred Stock is traded as depositary shares, with each depositary share representing 1/1000th of a share of Series A Preferred Stock. The depositary shares are listed on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol “HOVNP.” In fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019, we did not make any dividend payments on the Series A Preferred Stock as a result of covenant restrictions in our debt instruments. We have never paid a cash dividend to common stockholders. Due to our improved operating results, as of October 31, 2021 we are no longer restricted from making dividend payments under our debt instruments. On December 3, 2021, our Board of Directors authorized a dividend payment of $2.7 million to preferred shareholders of record on January 1, 2022 and which will be paid on January 15, 2022.

On October 31, 2019, in connection with the issuance of the 7.75% Senior Secured 1.25 Lien Notes due 2026, we issued and sold an aggregate of 178,427 shares of Class A Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share (and associated Preferred Stock Purchase Rights), to the purchasers of such Notes for an aggregate purchase price of $1,784.27. The issuance was exempt from registration under Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933.

Unconsolidated Joint Ventures 

As discussed in Note 20 – Investments in Unconsolidated Joint Ventures in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, we have investments in unconsolidated joint ventures in various markets where our homebuilding operations are located. Our unconsolidated joint ventures had total combined assets of $611.8 million at October 31, 2021 and $540.2 million at October 31, 2020. Our investments in unconsolidated joint ventures totaled $60.9 million at October 31, 2021 and $103.2 million at October 31, 2020. As of October 31, 2021 and 2020, our unconsolidated joint ventures had outstanding debt totaling $74.0 and $117.2 million, respectively, under separate construction loan agreements with different third-party lenders and affiliates of certain investment partners to finance their respective land development activities, with the outstanding debt secured by the corresponding underlying property and related project assets and non-recourse to us. While we and our unconsolidated joint venture partners provide certain guarantees and indemnities to the lender, we do not have a guaranty or any other obligation to repay our outstanding debt or to support the value of the collateral underlying the outstanding debt. We do not believe that our existing exposure under our guaranty and indemnity obligations related to the outstanding debt is material to our consolidated financial statements. See also Note 19 – Variable Interest Entities in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. We determined that none of our joint ventures at October 31, 2021 and 2020 were a variable interest entity. All our unconsolidated joint ventures were accounted for under the equity method because we did not have a controlling financial interest.

Inventory Activities

Total inventory, excluding consolidated inventory not owned, increased $142.0 million during the year ended October 31, 2021, from October 31, 2020. Total inventory, excluding consolidated inventory not owned, increased in the Northeast by $35.9 million, in the Midwest by $2.9 million, in the Southeast by $41.9 million and in the Southwest by $91.0 million. These increases were partially offset by decreases in the Mid-Atlantic of $5.0 million and in the West of $24.7 million. These inventory fluctuations were primarily attributable to new land purchases and land development, partially offset by home deliveries and land sales during the period. During the year ended October 31, 2021, we had aggregate impairments in the amount of $2.0 million. We wrote-off costs in the aggregate amount of $1.6 million during the year ended October 31, 2021 related to land options that expired or that we terminated, as the communities’ forecasted profitability was not projected to produce adequate returns on investment commensurate with the risk. In the last few years, we have been able to acquire new land parcels at prices that we believe will generate reasonable returns under current homebuilding market conditions. This trend may not continue in either the near or the long term. Substantially all homes under construction or completed and included in inventory at October 31, 2021 are expected to be closed during the next six to nine months.  

Consolidated inventory not owned decreased $83.5 million. Consolidated inventory not owned consists of options related to land banking and model financing transactions that were added to our Consolidated Balance Sheets in accordance with US GAAP. The decrease from October 31, 2020 to October 31, 2021 was primarily due to a decrease in land banking transactions along with a decrease in the sale and leaseback of certain model homes during the period. We have land banking arrangements, whereby we sell land parcels to the land bankers and they provide us an option to purchase back finished lots on a predetermined schedule. Because of our options to repurchase these parcels, for accounting purposes in accordance with ASC 606-10-55-70, these transactions are considered a financing rather than a sale. For purposes of our Consolidated Balance Sheet, at October 31, 2021, inventory of $66.2 million was recorded to “Consolidated inventory not owned,” with a corresponding amount of $31.3 million (net of debt issuance costs) recorded to “Liabilities from inventory not owned” for the amount of net cash received from the transactions. In addition, we sell and lease back certain of our model homes with the right to participate in the potential profit when each home is sold to a third party at the end of the respective lease. As a result of our continued involvement, for accounting purposes in accordance with ASC 606-10-55-68, these sale and leaseback transactions are considered a financing rather than a sale. Therefore, for purposes of our Consolidated Balance Sheet, at October 31, 2021, inventory of $32.5 million was recorded to “Consolidated inventory not owned,” with a corresponding amount of $31.5 million (net of debt issuance costs) recorded to “Liabilities from inventory not owned” for the amount of net cash received from the transactions.

When possible, we option property for development prior to acquisition. By optioning property, we are only subject to the loss of the cost of the option and predevelopment costs if we choose not to exercise the option. As a result, our commitment for major land acquisitions is reduced. The costs associated with optioned properties are included in “Land and land options held for future development or sale” on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Also included in “Land and land options held for future development or sale” are amounts associated with inventory in mothballed communities. We mothball (or stop development on) certain communities when we determine the current performance does not justify further investment at the time. That is, we believe we will generate higher returns if we decide against spending money to improve land today and save the raw land until such time as the markets improve or we determine to sell the property. As of October 31, 2021, we had mothballed land in 6 communities. The book value associated with these communities at October 31, 2021 was $4.3 million, which was net of impairment charges recorded in prior periods of $57.5 million. We continually review communities to determine if mothballing is appropriate. During fiscal 2021, we did not mothball any additional communities, but we sold four  previously mothballed communities and we re-activated two previously mothballed communities and portions of two previously mothballed communities.

Inventories held for sale, which are land parcels where we have decided not to build homes, and are actively marketing the land for sale, represented $2.0 million of our total inventories held for sale at October 31, 2020 and are reported at the lower of carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell. There were no inventories held for sale at October 31, 2021. In determining fair value for land held for sale, management considers, among other things, prices for land in recent comparable sale transactions, market analysis studies, which include the estimated price a willing buyer would pay for the land (other than in a forced liquidation sale) and recent bona fide offers received from outside third parties.

In the ordinary course of business, we enter into land and lot option purchase contracts in order to procure land or lots for the construction of homes. Lot option contracts enable us to control significant lot positions with a minimal capital investment and substantially reduce the risks associated with land ownership and development. At October 31, 2021, we had total cash deposits of $100.1 million to purchase land and lots with a total purchase price of $1.5 billion. Our financial exposure is generally limited to forfeiture of the nonrefundable deposits, letters of credit and other nonrefundable amounts incurred. We have no material third-party guarantees.

The following tables summarize home sites included in our total residential real estate. 

The following table summarizes our started or completed unsold homes and models, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, in active and substantially completed communities. The decrease in the total homes from October 31, 2020 to October 31, 2021 was primarily due to the increase in net contracts absorption pace during fiscal 2021. 

Other Balance Sheet Activities

Investments in and advances to unconsolidated joint ventures decreased $42.3 million during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2021 compared to October 31, 2020. The decrease was primarily due to partnership distributions during the period, along with our purchase of the remaining equity interest in one of our unconsolidated joint ventures in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. As a result of this transaction, we took control of four communities, including three active communities. The previously unconsolidated joint venture was subsequently dissolved. Additionally, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 we acquired the remaining assets and liabilities from one of our unconsolidated joint ventures which was disolved during the period, resulting in the write-off of our investment. These decreases were partially offset by an increase due to our entry into two new unconsolidated joint ventures during the first half of fiscal 2021. As of October 31, 2021 and October 31, 2020, we had investments in nine and ten unconsolidated homebuilding joint ventures, respectively, and one unconsolidated land development joint venture for both periods. We have no guarantees associated with our unconsolidated joint ventures, other than guarantees limited only to performance and completion of development, environmental indemnification and standard warranty and representation against fraud, misrepresentation and similar actions, including a voluntary bankruptcy.

Receivables, deposits and notes, net increased $6.2 million from October 31, 2020 to $39.9 million at October 31, 2021. The increase was primarily due to the timing of home closings, along with increased escrow and municipal deposits during the period, partially offset by a receivable for a settlement which was received in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.

Prepaid expenses and other assets were as follows as of:

Prepaid insurance decreased slightly due to the timing of premium payments. These costs are amortized over the life of the associated insurance policy, which can be one to three years. Prepaid project costs consist of community specific expenditures that are used over the life of the community. Such prepaids are expensed as homes are delivered. The decrease in prepaid project costs was primarily related to the close-out of communities during the fiscal year, along with the write-off of prepaid costs related to a land sale in the Midwest, partially offset by prepaid project costs for new communities during the fiscal year. Other prepaids increased primarily due to increased prepaid commissions and property taxes during the period. Lease right of use asset represents the net present value of our operating leases which, in accordance with ASC 842, are required to be recorded as an asset on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. See Note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.

Financial services assets consist primarily of residential mortgages receivable held for sale of which $149.2 million and $101.8 million at October 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, were being temporarily warehoused and are awaiting sale in the secondary mortgage market. The increase in mortgage loans held for sale from October 31, 2020 was primarily related to an increase in the volume of loans originated during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020, along with an increase in the average loan value.

Deferred tax assets, net, was $425.7 million at October 31, 2021, and zero at October 31, 2020, due to the full reversal of our federal valuation allowance and the reversal of a portion of our state valuation allowance in the second quarter of fiscal 2021.

Nonrecourse mortgages secured by inventory decreased to $125.1 million at October 31, 2021, from $135.1 million at October 31, 2020. The decrease was primarily due to the payment of existing mortgages, partially offset by additional loan borrowings on existing mortgages along with new mortgages for communities in most of our segments obtained during fiscal 2021.

Accounts payable and other liabilities are as follows as of:

The increase in accounts payable was primarily due to an increase in construction spending, corresponding to the increase in deliveries in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 as compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020. Reserves increased due to new accruals primarily for warranty and construction defect claims, partially offset by claim payments during the period. Lease liability represents the net present value of our minimum lease obligations, which as discussed above, are required to be recorded on our Consolidated Balance Sheets in accordance with ASC 842. Accrued expenses increased primarily due to an accrual for a sales reward program, along with an increase in accrued property taxes. The increase in accrued compensation was primarily due to expenses associated with our 2019 LTIP plan based on the increase in our stock price during fiscal 2021, along with increased company profitability in fiscal 2021 as compared to fiscal 2020, which resulted in higher bonuses. Other liabilities increased primarily due to deferred payroll tax withholdings during the period.

Customers’ deposits increased $20.0 million from October 31, 2020 to $68.3 million at October 31, 2021. The increase was primarily related to the increase in the dollar value of our backlog, associated with price increases in fiscal 2021, along with an increase due to the consolidation of one of our previously unconsolidated joint ventures during fiscal 2021, which has open for sale communities.

Liabilities from inventory not owned decreased $68.4 million to $62.8 million at October 31, 2021. The decrease was due to a decrease in land banking transactions during the period, along with a decrease in the sale and leaseback of certain model homes, both of which are accounted for as financing transactions as described above.

Accrued interest decreased $7.4 million to $28.2 million at October 31, 2021. The decrease was primarily due to the redemption of our 10.0% Senior Secured Notes due 2022 and 10.5% Senior Secured Notes due 2024 during the period, partially offset by new accruals during the period.

Financial Services liabilities increased $63.2 million from $119.0 million at October 31, 2020, to $182.2 million at October 31, 2021. The increase was primarily due to the increase in amounts outstanding under our mortgage warehouse lines of credit, and directly correlated to the increase in the volume of mortgage loans held for sale during the year.

Results of Operations

Total Revenues

Compared to the prior period, revenues increased (decreased) as follows:

Homebuilding

Sale of homes revenues increased $421.7 million, or 18.7%, for the year ended October 31, 2021, increased $302.3 million, or 15.5%, for the year ended October 31, 2020, and increased $43.5 million, or 2.3%, for the year ended October 31, 2019 as compared to the same period of the prior year. The increased revenues in fiscal 2021 were primarily due to the number of home deliveries increasing 9.1%, and the average price per home increasing to $430,966 in fiscal 2021 from $396,065 in fiscal 2020. The increase in deliveries in fiscal 2021 was primarily due to increased demand for new home construction during fiscal 2021. The increased revenues in fiscal 2020 were primarily due to the number of home deliveries increasing 15.0%, and the average price per home increasing to $396,065 in fiscal 2020 from $394,194 in fiscal 2019. The increase in deliveries in fiscal 2020 was primarily due to the increased demand for new home construction during the latter half of fiscal 2020. The increased revenues in fiscal 2019 were primarily due to the number of home deliveries increasing 2.0% and the average price per home increasing to $394,194 in fiscal 2019 from $393,280 in fiscal 2018. The increase in deliveries in fiscal 2019 was primarily due to the result of an increase in community count in fiscal 2019 as compared to fiscal 2018 of 14.6%. The increase in average price in fiscal 2021 and 2020 was primarily due to price increases in most of our communities as a result of a sustained surge in demand for new homes, which started in May 2020. The increase in average price for fiscal 2019 was primarily the result of geographic and community mix of our deliveries. For further detail on changes in segment revenues see “Homebuilding Operations by Segment” below. Land sales are ancillary to our homebuilding operations and are expected to continue in the future but may significantly fluctuate up or down. For further detail on land sales and other revenue, see the section titled “Land Sales and Other Revenues” below.

Information on homes delivered by segment is set forth below:

(1) Represents housing revenue and home deliveries for our unconsolidated homebuilding joint ventures for the period. We provide this data as a supplement to our consolidated results as an indicator of the volume managed in our unconsolidated joint ventures. See Note 20 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for a further discussion of our joint ventures.

The increase in housing revenues during the year ended October 31, 2021, as compared to the year ended October 31, 2020, was primarily attributed to our increased deliveries, from the sustained strong homebuilding market and high demand for new home construction we saw begin in fiscal 2020, and by the increase in average sales price. Housing revenues in fiscal 2021 increased 18.7% on a combined basis across all of our homebuilding segments, and average sales price increased by 8.8% in all such segments combined, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures. In our homebuilding segments, homes delivered increased in fiscal 2021 as compared to fiscal 2020 by 12.5%, 6.3%, 9.9%, 13.3% and 16.1% in the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest and West, respectively, partially offset by a 42.2% decrease in the Northeast. Overall in fiscal 2021 as compared to fiscal 2020, homes delivered increased 9.1% across all our segments, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures.

The increase in housing revenues during the year ended October 31, 2020, as compared to the year ended October 31, 2019, was primarily attributed to our increased deliveries, from the strong homebuilding market and high demand for new home construction, and by the increase in average sales price. Housing revenues in fiscal 2020 increased 15.5% on a combined basis across all of our homebuilding segments, and average sales price increased by 0.5% in all such segments combined, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures. In our homebuilding segments, homes delivered increased in fiscal 2020 as compared to fiscal 2019 by 81.3%, 15.8%, 6.9%, 0.6%, 19.7% and 6.3% in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest and West, respectively. Overall in fiscal 2020 as compared to fiscal 2019, homes delivered increased 15.0% across all of our segments, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures.  

Quarterly housing revenues and net sales contracts by segment, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, for the years ended October 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 are set forth below (net contracts are defined as new contracts executed during the period for the purchase of homes, less cancellations of contracts in the same period):

Contracts per average active selling community in fiscal 2021 were 55.3 compared to 54.3 in fiscal 2020. Our reported level of sales contracts (net of cancellations) was positively impacted by an increase in the pace of sales in all of the Company’s segments during fiscal 2021. Cancellation rates represent the number of cancelled contracts in the quarter divided by the number of gross sales contracts executed in the quarter. For comparison, the following are historical cancellation rates, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures:

Another common and meaningful way to analyze our cancellation trends is to compare the number of contract cancellations as a percentage of the beginning backlog. The following table provides this historical comparison, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures.

Most cancellations occur within the legal rescission period, which varies by state but is generally less than two weeks after the signing of the contract. Cancellations also occur as a result of a buyer's failure to qualify for a mortgage, which generally occurs during the first few weeks after signing. As shown in the tables above, contract cancellations over the past several years have been within what we believe to be a normal range, with fiscal 2021 cancellation rates, in particular, being below historical norms as a result of the strong market conditions. Fiscal 2020 had varying cancellation rates due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects. Market conditions and any possible further impacts from COVID-19 remain uncertain, and it is difficult to predict what cancellation rates will be in the future.

An important indicator of our future results is recently signed contracts and our home contract backlog for future deliveries. Our consolidated contract backlog, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, by segment is set forth below:

Contract backlog dollars increased 15.4% as of October 31, 2021 compared to October 31, 2020, and the number of homes in backlog decreased 4.6% for the same period. The increase in backlog dollars was driven by a 20.9% increase in the average price of the homes in backlog for the year ended October 31, 2021 compared to the prior fiscal year. In the month of November 2021, excluding unconsolidated joint ventures, we signed an additional 467 net contracts amounting to $239.7 million in contract value.

Total cost of sales on our Consolidated Statements of Operations includes expenses for consolidated housing and land and lot sales, including inventory impairment loss and land option write-offs (defined as “land charges” in the tables below). A breakout of such expenses for housing sales and homebuilding gross margin is set forth below.

Homebuilding gross margin before cost of sales interest expense and land charges is a non-GAAP financial measure. This measure should not be considered as an alternative to homebuilding gross margin determined in accordance with GAAP as an indicator of operating performance.

Management believes this non-GAAP measure enables investors to better understand our operating performance. This measure is also useful internally, helping management evaluate our operating results on a consolidated basis and relative to other companies in our industry. In particular, the magnitude and volatility of land charges for the Company, and for other homebuilders, have been significant and, as such, have made financial analysis of our industry more difficult. Homebuilding metrics excluding land charges, as well as interest amortized to cost of sales, and other similar presentations prepared by analysts and other companies are frequently used to assist investors in understanding and comparing the operating characteristics of homebuilding activities by eliminating many of the differences in companies’ respective level of impairments and levels of debt.

Cost of sales expenses as a percentage of consolidated home sales revenues are presented below:

We sell a variety of home types in various communities, each yielding a different gross margin. As a result, depending on the mix of communities delivering homes, consolidated gross margin may fluctuate up or down. Total homebuilding gross margin percentage increased to 18.6% for the year ended October 31, 2021 compared to 14.7% for the prior year. This increase was primarily due to increases in home prices across virtually all our operating segments, along with the mix of communities delivering compared to the prior year. Total homebuilding gross margin percentage increased to 14.7% for the year ended October 31, 2020 compared to 14.2% for the prior year. This increase was primarily due to the mix of communities delivering compared to the prior year, along with increases in home prices during the latter half of fiscal 2020 in virtually all of our markets.

Reflected as inventory impairment loss and land option write-offs in cost of sales (“land charges”), we have written off or written down certain inventories totaling $3.6 million, $8.8 million and $6.3 million during the years ended October 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively, to their estimated fair value. See Note 12 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for an additional discussion. During the years ended October 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, we wrote off residential land options and approval and engineering costs totaling $1.6 million, $6.8 million and $3.6 million, respectively, which are included in the total land charges mentioned above. Option, approval and engineering costs are written off when a community’s pro forma profitability is not projected to produce adequate returns on the investment commensurate with the risk and when we believe it is probable we will cancel the option, or when a community is redesigned, engineering costs related to the initial design are written off. Such write-offs were located in all segments in fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019. The inventory impairments amounted to $2.0 million, $2.0 million and $2.7 million for the years ended October 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. It is difficult to predict impairment levels, and should it become necessary or desirable to have additional land sales, lower prices, or should the estimates or expectations used in determining estimated cash flows or fair value decrease or differ from current estimates in the future, we may need to recognize additional impairments.

Below is a breakdown of our lot option walk-aways and impairments by segment for fiscal 2021. In fiscal 2021, we walked away from 13.5% of all the lots we controlled under option contracts. The remaining 86.5% of our option lots are in communities that we believe remain economically feasible.

The following table represents lot option walk-aways by segment for the year ended October 31, 2021:

The following table represents impairments by segment for the year ended October 31, 2021: