Merger would create 4th biggest U.S. home builder

Shareholders soon will vote on the proposed merger of two national home builders, Ryland Group and Standard Pacific Homes, a business combo that would be the nation’s fourth-largest home builder.

Shareholders of the two California-based companies will meet Sept. 28 at their respective headquarters, Standard Pacific in Irvine and Ryland in Westlake Village, and vote on the proposed merger.

The combined company would operate under a new name, CalAtlantic Group, and would be the fourth-largest home builder in the United States behind DR Horton, Miami-based Lennar and Pulte Group.

Lawrence Dean, a senior adviser of homebuilding consulting firm Metrostudy and a former Ryland employee, told the Orange County Register that “neither of them were small operators before. Now they’ll be in an even bigger league.”

Fifty-year-old Standard Pacific builds homes in California and six other states, including Florida. Ryland operates in 17 states. It has offices in Tampa and Orlando, according to its website.

According to Builder Magazine, Standard Pacific was the 11th-biggest U.S. home builder in 2014, with 4,956 closings and $2.4 billion of gross revenue, and Ryland was the fifth-largest, with 7,677 closings and gross revenue of nearly $2.6 billion.

The combined company, CalAtlantic Group, would have operations in 41 metropolitan areas in 17 states, among them 20 of the 25 largest U.S. cities.

CalAtlantic Group also would control 74,000 home sites spread across 538 developments. [Orange County Register] — Mike Seemuth