Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Organization

TRI Pointe Homes, Inc. is engaged in the design, construction and sale of innovative single-family homes through its portfolio of six quality brands across eight states, including Maracay Homes in Arizona, Pardee Homes in California and Nevada, Quadrant Homes in Washington, Trendmaker Homes in Texas, TRI Pointe Homes in California and Colorado and Winchester Homes in Maryland and Virginia.

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) as contained within the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”).

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries as described in “Reverse Acquisition” below. All significant intercompany accounts have been eliminated upon consolidation. Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to current period presentation. Subsequent events have been evaluated through the date the financial statements were issued.

Unless the context otherwise requires, the terms “we”, “us”, “our” and “the Company” refer to TRI Pointe Homes, Inc. (and its consolidated subsidiaries).

Reverse Acquisition

On July 7, 2014 (the “Closing Date”), TRI Pointe Homes, Inc. consummated the previously announced merger (the “Merger”) of our wholly-owned subsidiary, Topaz Acquisition, Inc. (“Merger Sub”), with and into Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company (“WRECO”), with WRECO surviving the Merger and becoming our wholly-owned subsidiary, as contemplated by the Transaction Agreement, dated as of November 3, 2013 (the “Transaction Agreement”), by and among us, Weyerhaeuser Company (“Weyerhaeuser”), the Company, WRECO and Merger Sub. The Merger is accounted for in accordance with ASC Topic 805, Business Combinations (“ASC 805”). For accounting purposes, the Merger is treated as a “reverse acquisition” and WRECO is considered the accounting acquirer. Accordingly, WRECO is reflected as the predecessor and acquirer and therefore the accompanying consolidated financial statements reflect the historical consolidated financial statements of WRECO for all periods presented and do not include the historical financial statements of TRI Pointe prior to the Closing Date. Subsequent to the Closing Date, the consolidated financial statements reflect the results of the combined company.

See Note 2, Merger with Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company, for further information on the Merger. In the Merger, each issued and outstanding WRECO common share was converted into 1.297 shares of TRI Pointe common stock. The historical issued and outstanding WRECO common shares (100,000,000 common shares for all periods presented prior to the Merger) have been recast (as 129,700,000 common shares of the Company for all periods prior to the Merger) in all periods presented to reflect this conversion.

Use of Estimates

Our financial statements have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires our management to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosures of contingent liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from our estimates.

Cash and Cash Equivalents and Concentration of Credit Risk

We define cash and cash equivalents as cash on hand, demand deposits with financial institutions, and short-term liquid investments with an initial maturity date of less than three months. The Company’s cash balances exceed federally insurable limits. The Company monitors the cash balances in its operating accounts and adjusts the cash balances as appropriate; however, these cash balances could be impacted if the underlying financial institutions fail or are subject to other adverse conditions in the financial markets. To date, the Company has experienced no loss or lack of access to cash in its operating accounts.

Real Estate Inventories and Cost of Sales

Real estate inventories consist of land, land under development, homes under construction, completed homes and model homes and are stated at cost, net of impairment losses. We capitalize direct carrying costs, including interest, property taxes and related development costs to inventories. Field construction supervision and related direct overhead are also included in the capitalized cost of inventories. Direct construction costs are specifically identified and allocated to homes while other common costs, such as land, land improvements and carrying costs, are allocated to homes within a community based upon their anticipated relative sales or fair value. In accordance with ASC Topic 835, Interest (“ASC 835”), homebuilding interest capitalized as a cost of inventories owned is included in costs of sales as related units or lots are sold. To the extent our debt exceeds our qualified assets as defined in ASC 835, we expense a portion of the interest incurred by us. Qualified assets represent projects that are actively under development. Homebuilding cost of sales is recognized at the same time revenue is recognized and is recorded based upon total estimated costs to be allocated to each home within a community. Any changes to the estimated costs are allocated to the remaining undelivered lots and homes within their respective community. The estimation and allocation of these costs requires a substantial degree of judgment by management.

The estimation process involved in determining relative sales or fair values is inherently uncertain because it involves estimating future sales values of homes before delivery. Additionally, in determining the allocation of costs to a particular land parcel or individual home, we rely on project budgets that are based on a variety of assumptions, including assumptions about construction schedules and future costs to be incurred. It is common that actual results differ from budgeted amounts for various reasons, including construction delays, increases in costs that have not been committed or unforeseen issues encountered during construction that fall outside the scope of existing contracts, or costs that come in less than originally anticipated. While the actual results for a particular construction project are accurately reported over time, a variance between the budget and actual costs could result in the understatement or overstatement of costs and have a related impact on gross margins between reporting periods. To reduce the potential for such variances, we have procedures that have been applied on a consistent basis, including assessing and revising project budgets on a periodic basis, obtaining commitments from subcontractors and vendors for future costs to be incurred and utilizing the most recent information available to estimate costs.

If there are indications of impairment, we perform a detailed budget and cash flow review of our real estate assets to determine whether the estimated remaining undiscounted future cash flows of the community are more or less than the asset’s carrying value. If the undiscounted cash flows are more than the asset’s carrying value, no impairment adjustment is required. However, if the undiscounted cash flows are less than the asset’s carrying value, the asset is deemed impaired and is written down to fair value. These impairment evaluations require us to make estimates and assumptions regarding future conditions, including timing and amounts of development costs and sales prices of real estate assets, to determine if expected future undiscounted cash flows will be sufficient to recover the asset’s carrying value.

When estimating undiscounted cash flows of a community, we make various assumptions, including: (i) expected sales prices and sales incentives to be offered, including the number of homes available, pricing and incentives being offered by us or other builders in other communities, and future sales price adjustments based on market and economic trends; (ii) expected sales pace and cancellation rates based on local housing market conditions, competition and historical trends; (iii) costs expended to date and expected to be incurred including, but not limited to, land and land development costs, home construction costs, interest costs, indirect construction and overhead costs, and selling and marketing costs; (iv) alternative product offerings that may be offered that could have an impact on sales pace, sales price and/or building costs; and (v) alternative uses for the property.

Many assumptions are interdependent and a change in one may require a corresponding change to other assumptions. For example, increasing or decreasing sales absorption rates has a direct impact on the estimated per unit sales price of a home, the level of time sensitive costs (such as indirect construction, overhead and carrying costs), and selling and marketing costs (such as model maintenance costs and advertising costs). Depending on the underlying objective of the community, assumptions could have a significant impact on the projected cash flow analysis. For example, if our objective is to preserve operating margins, our cash flow analysis will be different than if the objective is to increase sales. These objectives may vary significantly from community to community and over time. If assets are considered impaired, impairment is determined by the amount the asset’s carrying value exceeds its fair value. Fair value is determined based on estimated future cash flows discounted for inherent risks associated with real estate assets. These discounted cash flows are impacted by expected risk based on estimated land development, construction and delivery timelines; market risk of price erosion; uncertainty of development or construction cost increases; and other risks specific to the asset or market conditions where the asset is located when assessment is made. These factors are specific to each community and may vary among communities. We perform a quarterly review for indicators of impairment. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 we recorded impairment charges of $931,000, $341.1 million and $735,000, respectively. The impairment charge in 2013 was primarily related to the impairment of the Coyote Springs Property, which was an excluded asset per the Transaction Agreement.

Revenue Recognition

In accordance with ASC Topic 360, Property, Plant, and Equipment, revenues from home sales and other real estate sales are recorded and a profit is recognized when the respective units are delivered. Home sales and other real estate sales are delivered when all conditions of escrow are met, including delivery of the home or other real estate asset, title passage, appropriate consideration is received and collection of associated receivables, if any, is reasonably assured. Sales incentives are a reduction of revenues when the respective unit is delivered. When it is determined that the earnings process is not complete, the sale and the related profit are deferred for recognition in future periods. The profit we record is based on the calculation of cost of sales, which is dependent on our allocation of costs, as described in more detail above in the section entitled “Real Estate Inventories and Cost of Sales.”

Warranty Reserves

In the normal course of business, we incur warranty-related costs associated with homes that have been delivered to homebuyers. Estimated future direct warranty costs are accrued and charged to cost of sales in the period when the related homebuilding revenues are recognized while indirect warranty overhead salaries and related costs are charged to cost of sales in the period incurred. Amounts are accrued based upon our historical rates. We assess the adequacy of our warranty accrual on a quarterly basis and adjust the amounts as appropriate for current quantitative and qualitative factors. Factors that affect the warranty accruals include the number of homes delivered, historical and anticipated rates of warranty claims and cost per claim. Although we consider the warranty accruals reflected in our consolidated balance sheet to be adequate, actual future costs could differ significantly from our currently estimated amounts. Our warranty accrual is included in accrued expenses and other liabilities in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.

Investments in Unconsolidated Entities

We have investments in unconsolidated entities over which we have significant influence that we account for using the equity method with taxes provided on undistributed earnings. We record earnings and accrue taxes in the period that the earnings are recorded by our affiliates. Under the equity method, our share of the unconsolidated entities’ earnings or loss is included in equity in income (loss) of unconsolidated entities in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations. We evaluate our investments in unconsolidated entities for impairment when events and circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the investment may not be recoverable.

Variable Interest Entities

The Company accounts for variable interest entities in accordance with ASC Topic 810, Consolidation (“ASC 810”). Under ASC 810, a variable interest entity (“VIE”) is created when: (a) the equity investment at risk in the entity is not sufficient to permit the entity to finance its activities without additional subordinated financial support provided by other parties, including the equity holders; (b) the entity’s equity holders as a group (i) lack the direct or indirect ability to make decisions about the entity, (ii) are not obligated to absorb expected losses of the entity or (iii) do not have the right to receive expected residual returns of the entity; or (c) the entity’s equity holders have voting rights that are not proportionate to their economic interests, and the activities of the entity involve, or are conducted on behalf of, the equity holder with disproportionately few voting rights. If an entity is deemed to be a VIE pursuant to ASC 810, the enterprise that has both (a) the power to direct the activities of a VIE that most significantly impact the entity’s economic performance and (b) the obligation to absorb the expected losses of the entity or right to receive benefits from the entity that could be potentially significant to the VIE is considered the primary beneficiary and must consolidate the VIE.

Under ASC 810, a non-refundable deposit paid to an entity is deemed to be a variable interest that will absorb some or all of the entity’s expected losses if they occur. Our land purchase and lot option deposits generally represent our maximum exposure to the land seller if we elect not to purchase the optioned property. In some instances, we may also expend funds for due diligence, development and construction activities with respect to optioned land prior to takedown. Such costs are classified as inventories owned, which we would have to write off should we not exercise the option. Therefore, whenever we enter into a land option or purchase contract with an entity and make a non-refundable deposit, a VIE may have been created. In accordance with ASC 810, we perform ongoing reassessments of whether we are the primary beneficiary of a VIE.

Stock-Based Compensation

We account for share-based awards in accordance with ASC Topic 718, Compensation-Stock Compensation (“ASC 718”). ASC 718 requires that the cost resulting from all share-based payment transactions be recognized in the financial statements. ASC 718 requires all entities to apply a fair-value-based measurement method in accounting for share-based payment transactions with employees.

Sales and Marketing Expense

Sales and marketing costs incurred to sell real estate projects are capitalized if they are reasonably expected to be recovered from the sale of the project or from incidental operations and are incurred for tangible assets that are used directly through the selling period to aid in the sale of the project or services that have been performed to obtain regulatory approval of sales. All other selling expenses and other marketing costs are expensed in the period incurred.

Restructuring Charges

Restructuring charges are incurred related to the Merger in addition to general cost reduction initiatives. These charges are comprised of employee retention and severance-related expenses and lease termination costs. We account for restructuring charges in accordance with ASC Topic 420, Exit or Disposal Cost Obligations or ASC Topic 712 – Compensation – Nonretirement Postemployment Benefits.

Income Taxes

We account for income taxes in accordance with ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recorded based on future tax consequences of both temporary differences between the amounts reported for financial reporting purposes and the amounts deductible for income tax purposes, and are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply in the years in which the temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in earnings in the period when the changes are enacted.

Each quarter we assess our deferred tax assets to determine whether all or any portion of the assets is more likely than not unrealizable under ASC 740. We are required to establish a valuation allowance for any portion of the asset we conclude is more likely than not to be unrealizable. Our assessment considers, among other things, the nature, frequency and severity of our current and cumulative losses, forecasts of our future taxable income, the duration of statutory carryforward periods and tax planning alternatives. Due to uncertainties inherent in the estimation process, it is possible that actual results may vary from estimates.

We classify any interest and penalties related to income taxes as part of income tax expense. As of December 31, 2014, the Company has liabilities for gross unrecognized tax benefits of $14.9 million the majority of which were assumed in connection with the Merger.

Goodwill

In connection with the Merger, $139.3 million of goodwill has been recorded as of December 31, 2014. We have completed the majority of our business combination accounting as of December 31, 2014 and expect to complete the remainder in the first quarter of 2015. In accordance with ASC Topic 350, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other (“ASC 350”), we will evaluate goodwill for possible impairment annually or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable. Based on our qualitative analysis, we have concluded as of December 31, 2014, our goodwill was not impaired.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In April 2014, the FASB issued amendments to Accounting Standards Update 2014-08, Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity. The update requires that a disposal representing a strategic shift that has (or will have) a major effect on an entity’s financial results or a business activity classified as held for sale should be reported as discontinued operations. The amendments also expand the disclosure requirements for discontinued operations and add new disclosures for individually significant dispositions that do not qualify as discontinued operations. The amendments are effective prospectively for fiscal years, and interim reporting periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2014 (early adoption is permitted only for disposals that have not been previously reported). The implementation of the amended guidance is not expected to have a material impact on our consolidated financial position or results of operations.

In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2014-09”). The core principle of ASU 2014-09 is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. To achieve that core principle, an entity should apply the following steps: identify the contract(s) with a customer; identify the performance obligations in the contract; determine the transaction price; allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. ASU 2014-09 supersedes the revenue-recognition requirements in ASC Topic 605, Revenue Recognition, most industry-specific guidance throughout the industry topics of the accounting standards codification, and some cost guidance related to construction-type and production-type contracts. ASU 2014-09 is effective for public entities for the annual periods ending after December 15, 2016, and for annual and interim periods thereafter. Early adoption is not permitted. Companies may use either a full retrospective or a modified retrospective approach to adopt ASU 2014-09. We are currently evaluating the approach for implementation and the potential impact of adopting this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In August 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-15 (“ASU 2014-15”), Presentation of Financial Statements — Going Concern (Subtopic 205-40): Disclosure of Uncertainties about an Entity’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern, which requires management to evaluate, in connection with preparing financial statements for each annual and interim reporting period, whether there are conditions or events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about an entity’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that the financial statements are issued (or within one year after the date that the financial statements are available to be issued when applicable) and provide related disclosures. ASU 2014-15 is effective for the annual period ending after December 15, 2016, and for annual and interim periods thereafter. Early adoption is permitted. We believe the adoption of this guidance will not have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements.

Fair Value Measurements

ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, defines “fair value” as the price that would be received for selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at measurement date and requires assets and liabilities carried at fair value to be classified and disclosed in the following three categories:

·	Level 1—Quoted prices for identical instruments in active markets

·	Level 2—Quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are inactive; and model-derived valuations in which all significant inputs and significant value drivers are observable in active markets at measurement date

·	Level 3—Valuations derived from techniques where one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable in active markets at measurement date

Segment Reporting

In accordance with ASC Topic 280, Segment Reporting, in determining the most appropriate reportable segments, we considered similar economic and other characteristics, including product types, average selling prices, gross profits, production processes, suppliers, subcontractors, regulatory environments, land acquisition results, and underlying demand and supply.