Commitments And Contingencies (Narrative) (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended							9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	May 12, 2010 plaintiffs properties	Nov. 07, 2008 plaintiffs properties	Oct. 24, 2008 plaintiffs properties	May 16, 2008 properties plaintiffs	Sep. 30, 2011 Legal Reserve [Member]	Dec. 31, 2010 Legal Reserve [Member]	Sep. 30, 2011 Performance Guarantee [Member]	Sep. 30, 2011 Standby Letters Of Credit [Member] HomeAmerican [Member]	Sep. 30, 2011 Standby Letters Of Credit [Member] M D C Holdings [Member]
Schedule Of Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Outstanding performance bonds									$ 70,600,000
Issued letters of credit	5,100,000	5,100,000								7,800,000	21,500,000
Mortgage loan loss reserve	3,035,000	4,332,000
Number of Plaintiffs			40	35	86	66
Number of Households			11	9	21	15
Legal accruals							$ 12,700,000	$ 14,200,000