Fairlawn, OH, June 6--Homebuilder Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. said the value of its contracts rose 34.3 percent in May from a year ago, while the number of net contracts rose nearly 17 percent as acquisitions and joint ventures helped offset a decline in California.
The number of active selling communities company-wide at the end of May rose to 319 from 286 communities a year ago, including 14 in Orlando from the Cambridge Homes acquisition.
The dollar value of homes in the U.S. Southeast rose 81 percent to $166.1 million from 467 contracts, up 43.7 percent from a year ago. In the Northeast, the value of homes rose 33 percent to $112 million from 286 contracts, an increase of 5.5 percent.
In California, net contracts fell nearly 24 percent to 348, with the dollar value down 18.6 percent to $150.1 million.
The company said the California decline was due in part to a conscious effort to limit the release of new homes in certain communities to ensure not selling too far in advance of deliveries, and due to regulatory delays that prevented sales in several communities.
