The Company consists of two distinct operations: homebuilding and financial
services. Our homebuilding operations are aggregated for reporting purposes
into three reporting segments - the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Southern regions.
Our financial services operations support our homebuilding operations by providing
mortgage loans and title services to the customers of our homebuilding operations
and is reported as its own segment.
We design, market, construct and sell single-family homes, attached townhomes,
and condominiums to first-time, move-up, empty-nester and luxury buyers. In
addition to home sales, our homebuilding operations generate revenue from the
sale of land and lots. We use the term “home” to refer to a single-family
residence, whether it is a single-family home or other type of residential property,
and we use the term “community” to refer to a single development
in which homes are constructed primarily in planned development communities
and mixed-use communities. We are currently offering homes for sale in 150 communities
within 13 markets located in eight states.
We offer mortgage banking services to our homebuyers through our 100%-owned
subsidiary, M/I Financial, LLC.
We believe we have experienced management teams in each of our divisions with
local market expertise. Our business requires in-depth knowledge of local markets
to acquire land in desirable locations and on favorable terms, engage subcontractors,
plan communities that meet local demand, anticipate consumer tastes in specific
markets, and assess local regulatory environments. Although we centralize certain
functions (such as accounting, human resources, legal, marketing, product development,
purchasing administration, and risk management) to benefit from economies of
scale, our local management, generally under the direction of an Area President
and supervised by a Region President, exercises considerable autonomy in identifying
land acquisition opportunities, developing and implementing product and sales
strategies, and controlling costs.
Our residential communities are generally located in suburban areas that are
easily accessible through public and personal transportation. Our communities
are designed as neighborhoods that fit existing land characteristics. We strive
to achieve diversity among architectural styles within a community by offering
a variety of house models and several exterior design options for each model
and preserve existing trees and foliage whenever practicable. Normally, homes
of the same type or color may not be built next to each other. We believe our
communities have attractive entrances with distinctive signage and landscaping
and our added attention to community detail avoids a “development”
appearance and gives each community a diversified neighborhood appearance.
We offer homes ranging from a base sales price of approximately $140,000 to
$1,000,000 and from approximately 1,300 to 5,500 square feet. In addition to
single-family detached homes, we also offer attached townhomes in most of our
markets as well as condominiums in our Columbus and Washington, D.C. markets.
By offering a wide range of homes, we are able to attract first-time, move-up,
empty-nester and luxury homebuyers. It is our goal to sell more than one home
to our buyers, and we believe we have had success in this pursuit.
We devote significant resources to the research, design and development of our
homes to meet the demands of our buyers as well as the changing market requirements.
Across all of our divisions, we currently offer over 630 different floor plans
designed to reflect current lifestyles and design trends. In late 2012, we reintroduced
our Showcase Collection in the Midwest, which is designed for our move-up, empty-nester
and luxury homebuyers and offers more design options, larger floor plans, and
a higher-end product line of homes in upscale communities. In 2014, our Showcase
Collection expanded significantly in several of our markets. In addition, we
are developing new plans and communities specifically for the growing empty-nester
market. These plans (primarily ranch and main floor master bedroom type plans)
focus on move-down buyers, are smaller in size, and feature outdoor living potential,
fewer bedrooms, and better community amenities. We have value-engineered all
of our product lines to reduce production costs and construction cycle times
while adhering to our quality standards and using materials and construction
techniques that reflect our commitment to more environmentally conscious homebuilding
methods. It is a core value of M/I Homes to offer homes that are current in
design and lifestyle trends. As a rule, our homebuilding divisions share successful
plans with other divisions, when appropriate, for use in new markets.
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