<div id="subtitle">Homebuilder Beazer Homes earns $48 million in fiscal 1st quarter on generous tax gain</div><div><p>Homebuyers spurred by low interest rates and government incentives helped lift Beazer Homes USA Inc.'s sales in the last three months of 2009, but the builder only turned a profit because of a hefty tax gain.</p><p>Management said Friday it expects to reel in more home shoppers this year, but stopped short of forecasting a profitable year.</p><p>"We want to see how the market comes out," said Ian McCarthy, Beazer's president and CEO.</p><p>Like other builders, the Atlanta-based company saw orders pick up last summer thanks to low mortgage rates and a tax credit for homebuyers.</p><p>But many industry experts question whether the fragile housing recovery will sputter once the tax credits — $8,000 for new buyers and $6,500 for current owners — expire at the end of April.</p><p>McCarthy argued sales may not necessarily slow at that point if home prices remain stable and unemployment declines.</p><p>"Having said that, we are planning for a softer second half of the year, but hoping for something better," McCarthy said.</p><p>For now, however, Beazer is benefiting from a surge in business that hasn't let up.</p><p>"Momentum has continued in January, so that is very, very positive," he said.</p><p>Beazer earned $48 million, or $1.17 a share, in its fiscal first quarter ended in December. That compares with a loss of $80.3 million, or $2.08 a share, in the prior-year period.</p><p>The builder booked a $101 million tax gain.</p><p>Revenue was flat at $218.8 million versus $218.2 million.</p><p>Without accounting for the tax gain, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting a loss of 90 cents a share on revenue of about $200.6 million.</p><p>Investors initially sent the builder's shares about 6 percent higher, but gain didn't last. Shares fell 3 cents to $4.08 in afternoon trading.</p><p>Beazer, which caters primarily to first-time homebuyers, is headquartered in Atlanta and has operations in 16 states, with many communities along the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southwest.</p><p>The company said orders for new homes increased almost 37 percent compared to year-ago levels. Completed sales also rose 8 percent from the same period a year earlier. And the number of buyers who backed out of contracts dropped to 27 percent from 46 percent a year ago, a sign shoppers are increasingly confident.</p><p>The builder has focused on offering more energy efficient homes. It also has geared up to buy more land this year.</p><p>Beazer said it modestly increased construction this quarter in anticipation of more sales in the spring. The move isn't without risk.</p><p>The builder still owns a large number of unsold homes that have lost roughly half their value, said Joel Locker, an analyst with FBN Securities.</p><p>"They're out of the woods if home prices don't fall again," Locker said.</p><p>The company is one of several builders to report a quarterly profit thanks to a tax gain and a surge in home orders to close out 2009.</p><p>D.R. Horton Inc., Ryland Group Inc. and Meritage Homes Corp. each reported quarterly profits and a jump in new home orders.</p><p>___</p><p>On the Net:</p><p>Beazer Homes USA: http://www.beazer.com/</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=68519542&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

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