D. R. Horton

D. R. Horton

Type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: DHI S&P 500 Component
Industry	Construction
Founded	1978
Headquarters	Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
Key people	Donald R. Horton, Founder and Chairman Donald J. Tomnitz, CEO and President
Slogan	America's Builder
Website	http://www.drhorton.com/

D. R. Horton is the largest residential house-building company^[1] in the United States based on its 18,890 houses sold and posted a profit of $956 million in the 12 months that ended Sept. 30, 2012. Founded in 1978 by Donald Ray Horton in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, D. R. Horton is ranked as the largest house builder by units closed in the United States since 2002. The company has its headquarters in the D. R. Horton Tower in Downtown Fort Worth, Texas.^[2]

Profile

D. R. Horton builds single-detached dwellings in 26 states by partnering with real estate brokers. It employs 3,000 workers nationwide. The official slogan of D. R. Horton is "America's Builder", rooted in the fact that the company occupies the top slot among America's largest house builders. The national headquarters of D. R. Horton are located in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, where the company occupies the D. R. Horton Tower, a 38-story skyscraper prominent on the Fort Worth skyline. The founder of D. R. Horton, Donald Ray Horton, continues to serve the company as chairman of the board of directors.

D.R. Horton's geographic exposure now extends from Texas to the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic and through the West Coast and Southwest. The company has minimal exposure in the upper Midwest and Northeast. Single-family detached homes accounted for 91% of D.R. Horton’s sales in 2013. The company also builds condominiums, town homes, and has some multi-family exposure. D.R. Horton also operates a financial arm, which provides mortgage financing and ancillary services such as title agency services. The company doesn’t maintain mortgage exposure on its balance sheet. It immediately sells the loans to third parties. Also, most of the company’s loans are agencies—Ginnie Mae and Freddie Mac. Financial services account for about 3% of D.R. Horton’s revenues.^[3]

Controversy

The company has been involved in a closely followed National Labor Relations Board case involving a mandatory arbitration agreement provision relating to the waiver of rights to bring a class or collective action to resolve employment disputes in D.R. Horton, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board, No. 12-60031 (Dec. 3, 2013).^[4]

Lawsuits surrounding fracking in the town of Denton, TX have brought the company in proximity to legal actions taken against the city and local drilling companies. Residents allege that the town council permitted the company to build houses as close at 250 feet to the gas wells after the city had banned drilling within 1200 feet of residences.^[5]

References