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Accrued Expenses
6 Months Ended
Apr. 30, 2017
Payables and Accruals [Abstract]  
Accrued Expenses
Accrued Expenses
Accrued expenses at April 30, 2017 and October 31, 2016 consisted of the following (amounts in thousands):
 
April 30,
2017
 
October 31,
2016
Land, land development, and construction
$
139,603

 
$
153,264

Compensation and employee benefits
136,924

 
138,282

Escrow liability
40,198

 
137,396

Self-insurance
129,190

 
126,431

Warranty
355,934

 
370,992

Deferred income
40,722

 
43,488

Interest
36,472

 
34,903

Commitments to unconsolidated entities
8,278

 
5,637

Other
50,075

 
61,907

 
$
937,396

 
$
1,072,300


As previously disclosed in Note 6, “Accrued Expenses” in our 2016 Form 10-K, we reviewed communities in Pennsylvania and Delaware (which are in our Mid-Atlantic region) and determined that we needed to make repairs primarily to older homes in certain of these communities relating to stucco and other water intrusion claims. Each quarter, we review and update our assumptions to the estimates used in determining our estimated liability for these claims. This review and update includes an analysis to determine an estimated number of claims likely to be received and the estimated costs to resolve these claims. This analysis involves many factors including: the number of communities involved; the closing dates of the homes in each community; the number of claims received to date; our inspection of homes; an estimate of the number of homes we expect to repair; the type and cost of repairs that have been performed in each community; the estimated costs to remediate pending and future claims in each community; the expected recovery from our insurance carriers and others; and the amount of warranty and self-insurance reserves already recorded. Due to the degree of judgment required and the potential for variability in the underlying assumptions, it is reasonably possible that our actual costs could differ from those estimated, such differences could be material, and, therefore, we are unable to estimate the range of any such differences.
Based upon our reviews for the six month and three month periods ended April 30, 2017, we determined that no adjustments to our previous estimates were needed. Based upon our review for the three months ended April 30, 2016, we determined that our estimated costs had increased and we recognized an additional charge of $2.5 million in the six month and three month periods ended April 30, 2016. As of April 30, 2017, we recognized cumulative charges of approximately $171.8 million for water intrusion claims; the estimated aggregate cost of these claims is $324.4 million, of which we expect to recover approximately $152.6 million from outside insurance carriers and suppliers.
At April 30, 2017 and October 31, 2016, our estimated remaining liability to be expended for the aforementioned known and unknown stucco and other water intrusion claims was $282.8 million and $298.0 million, respectively, of which we expect to recover a total of approximately $130.4 million and $141.7 million, respectively, from outside insurance carriers and others.
The table below provides, for the periods indicated, a reconciliation of the changes in our warranty accrual (amounts in thousands):
 
Six months ended April 30,
 
Three months ended April 30,
 
2017
 
2016
 
2017
 
2016
Balance, beginning of period
$
370,992

 
$
93,083

 
$
364,058

 
$
90,661

Additions – homes closed during the period
12,701

 
10,967

 
7,597

 
6,471

Addition – Coleman liabilities acquired
1,111

 


 


 


Increase in accruals for homes closed in prior years
3,188

 
6,192

 
1,494

 
3,739

Reclassification from other accruals
1,082

 

 
350

 

Charges incurred
(33,140
)
 
(19,048
)
 
(17,565
)
 
(9,677
)
Balance, end of period
$
355,934

 
$
91,194

 
$
355,934

 
$
91,194