Las Vegas home builder sold for $20 million

Grace Leong

Wednesday, July 28, 1999 | 10:55 a.m.

Centex Homes, a home-building subsidiary of Dallas-based Centex Corp., said Tuesday it's buying Real Homes Inc. of Las Vegas for about $20 million in cash.

Centex Homes will acquire homes under construction and approximately 1,270 lots either owned or controlled by Real Homes in the Las Vegas area, said Scott Lee, Real Homes' vice president.

"We have the capability to build up to 1,300 homes, and will be using subcontractors in Las Vegas to build these homes," said Neil Devroy, communications director of Centex Homes.

Real Homes will operate under and assume the Centex Homes name shortly, he said. Centex Homes, one of the largest home builders in the United States, has operations in 19 states and Washington, D.C. The company expects to deliver more than 17,000 homes during its current fiscal year ending March 31, 2000.

Real Homes builds approximately 500 homes annually for first-time buyers in the Las Vegas market. These are priced in the low $100,000s.

Bradley Burns, founder of Real Homes, will serve as president in Centex Homes' Las Vegas division after the acquisition, and all Real Homes employees are expected to be retained.

"The acquisition will again establish a Centex Homes presence in the important Las Vegas market, a market we have not served since 1973. We have been evaluating the market for some time and are pleased about our upcoming association with such a high-quality operation and its employees," said Timothy R. Eller, chairman and chief executive of Centex Homes.

"Centex Homes has looked at a variety of markets in terms of potential growth and we've been looking for the right opportunity to enter the Las Vegas market," Devroy said. "Real Homes is a quality builder and has a similar style of building as Centex, which makes it a compatible organization."

Centex Corp., through other subsidiaries, ranks as one of the nation's largest nonbank-affiliated retail mortgage loan originators and a leading general building contractor. Centex also has operations in investment real estate and home services and owns a majority interest in a publicly held construction products company.