HORSHAM, Pa., Jan. 12, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- A joint venture consisting of Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL), which is the managing member, Meritage Homes Corp. (NYSE:MTH), and Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) has purchased a 5,485-acre land parcel in northwest Phoenix from DaimlerChrysler Corporation (NYSE:DCX) for $312 million. According to research published by The Arizona Republic, this represents the largest dollar value land transaction recorded in Arizona history.
The Maricopa County property, which DaimlerChrysler currently utilizes as a vehicle endurance testing and development facility, is bound by 183rd Avenue on the east, 211th Avenue on the west, Dove Valley on the south and Joy Ranch Road on the north. DaimlerChrysler will continue to lease the property for the next few years, in order to plan and accommodate for the orderly transition of its testing operations.
Toll Brothers and Meritage Homes each plan to build a significant number of homes on the site. Simon Property Group, Inc. has the option to purchase a substantial portion of the commercial property. Other parcels may be sold to third parties. Initial plans call for a mixed-use master planned community, which will include approximately 4,840 acres of single-family homes and attached homes. Approximately 645 acres of commercial and retail development will include schools, community amenities and open space. Initial homes sales are tentatively scheduled to begin in 2009. According to the approved General Plan, the site allows between 15,000 to 31,000 homes.
Robert I. Toll, chairman and chief executive officer of Toll Brothers, Inc., stated: "We are thrilled to have been chosen by DaimlerChrysler and to have teamed up with two excellent partners to develop this fabulous piece of real estate. The northwest area of Phoenix has experienced unprecedented popularity and this particular parcel is a highly coveted site.
"The combined expertise of our team makes for a strong partnership as we move forward to develop this landmark community. Toll Brothers is a Fortune 500 Company and the nation's leading builder of luxury homes. Meritage Homes is a Fortune 1000 home builder headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona and Dallas, with great history, experience and knowledge in the metro Phoenix market. Simon Property Group is the largest publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) in North America and the country's largest owner, developer and manager of high quality retail real estate."
Steven J. Hilton, co-chairman and chief executive officer of Meritage Homes, stated: "Growth in and around the Phoenix area has been tremendous in the past decade. With more than 20 years of home building experience in the Phoenix area, Meritage Homes is proud to have participated in this development, which has contributed to our impressive growth rate for the past five-year period. We are very enthusiastic about this opportunity and look forward to working with Maricopa County and the City of Surprise, as well as Toll Brothers and Simon Property Group, to create an outstanding community in which to live, work, shop and play."
Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL) is the nation's leading builder of luxury homes. The company currently operates in 21 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. The company is the only public home builder to have won all three of the industry's highest honors: America's Best Builder, the National Housing Quality Award and National Builder of the Year. It is a Fortune 500 Company and a Forbes Platinum 400 Company. Within the most recent FORTUNE 500 rankings, Toll Brothers' Total Return to Investors ranked No. 20 for the ten-year period from 1994 to 2004 and the company ranked No. 36 in ten-year earnings per share growth, producing a 25% compound average annual rate of EPS growth from 1994 to 2004. The Company ranked No. 107 in FY 2004 net profit margin, No. 264 in FY 2004 net income, and No. 477 based on FY 2004 revenues. For more information visit tollbrothers.com.
Simon Property Group, Inc., headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership, development and management of retail real estate, primarily regional malls, Premium Outlet(R) centers and community/lifestyle centers. The Company's current total market capitalization is approximately $41 billion. Through its subsidiary partnership, it currently owns or has an interest in 286 properties in the United States containing an aggregate of 200 million square feet of gross leasable area in 39 states plus Puerto Rico. Simon also owns interests in 51 European shopping centers in France, Italy, and Poland; 5 Premium Outlet(R) centers in Japan; and one Premium Outlet(R) center in Mexico. Additional Simon Property Group information is available at www.simon.com.
Meritage Homes Corp. (NYSE:MTH) is one of the nation's largest single-family homebuilders. The Company has been on Forbes' "Best Big Companies" list for three years, Fortune's "Fastest Growing Companies in America" list five of the last seven years, and is included in the S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Meritage operates in fast-growing states of the southern and western United States, including six of the top 10 single-family housing markets in the country, and has reported 17 consecutive years of record revenues and net earnings. For more information about the company, please visit the Meritage Web site located at www.meritagehomes.com.
Certain information included herein and in other Company reports, SEC filings, statements and presentations is forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements concerning anticipated operating results, financial resources, changes in revenues, changes in profitability, interest expense, growth and expansion, anticipated income from joint ventures and the Toll Brothers Realty Trusts Group, the ability to acquire land, the ability to secure governmental approvals and the ability to open new communities, the ability to sell homes and properties, the ability to deliver homes from backlog, the average delivered price of homes, the ability to secure materials and subcontractors, the ability to maintain the liquidity and capital necessary to expand and take advantage of future opportunities, and stock market valuations. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect actual results and cause them to differ materially from expectations expressed herein and in other Company reports, SEC filings, statements and presentations. These risks and uncertainties include local, regional and national economic conditions, the demand for homes, domestic and international political events, uncertainties created by terrorist attacks, the effects of governmental regulation, the competitive environment in which the Company operates, fluctuations in interest rates, changes in home prices, the availability and cost of land for future growth, the availability of capital, uncertainties and fluctuations in capital and securities markets, changes in tax laws and their interpretation, legal proceedings, the availability of adequate insurance at reasonable cost, the ability of customers to finance the purchase of homes, the availability and cost of labor and materials, and weather conditions.
CONTACT: Toll Brothers, Inc.
Frederick N. Cooper
(215) 938-8312
Meritage Homes Corp.
Brent Anderson/Jane Hays
(972) 543-8100
