IRVINE, CA—As the housing sector outlook continues to brighten, homebuilderStandard Pacific Corp. is reporting a strong second quarter on many fronts. Compared to Q2 2013, the firm reports pretax income of $91.8 million in Q2, up 80%; backlog value of $1.1 billion, up 20%; home-sale revenues of $591.7 million, up 36%; average selling price of $479,000, up 21%; and 1,236 new home deliveries, up 13%.

According to Scott Stowell, Standard Pacific's president and CEO, “Our 2014 second-quarter performance reflects the strength of our positioning and the continued execution of our strategy. Our early efforts to build a strong land position and to create an innovative product portfolio for the move-up homebuyer, combined with the … focus of our team on constructing well-built homes and providing an exceptional customer experience, have all contributed to our 80% increase in pretax profit and our solid operating margin, which was 15.2% for the 2014 second quarter.”

The 36% year-over-year increase in revenues primarily resulted from the firm's 21% increase in average home price, the highest quarterly average home price in the company's nearly 50-year history, and a 13% increase in new-home deliveries. The increase in average home price was primarily attributable to a shift to more move-up product, a continued reduction in the use of sales incentives and general price increases within a majority of the company's markets.

The increase in new home deliveries was driven by a 6% year-over-year increase in the number of homes in beginning backlog expected to close during the quarter and a 30% increase in speculative homes sold and closed, compared to the prior year period, the firm reports. The increase in year-over-year backlog value was driven primarily by an 18% increase in the average selling price of the homes in backlog.

During the second quarter, the firm spent $212 million on land purchases and development costs, compared to $311.2 million for second-quarter 2013.  The home sites owned that are actively selling or under development represent a five-year supply, based on the company's deliveries for the trailing 12 months ending June 30.

Also, the firm ended the quarter with $570 million of available liquidity, including $130 million of unrestricted homebuilding cash and a $440-million untapped revolving credit facility. This facility was amended on July 31 to, among other things, extend the maturity date to July 2018, increase the aggregate commitment to $450 million and expand the accordion feature to permit the aggregate commitment to be increased to a maximum amount of $750 million, subject to the company's future needs and the availability of additional bank capacity. The credit facility's financial covenants were not altered in connection with the amendment. The company's homebuilding debt-to-book capitalization as of June 30 of this year and 2013 was 53.8% and 53.5%, respectively.

As GlobeSt.com reported in June, Standard Pacific Homes began construction on Greenwood in Tustin Legacy, the first traditional single-family home community at Tustin Legacy in Tustin, CA. The new community will offer 375 upscale homes at the intersection of Park Ave. and Victory Rd., slated to open in Spring 2015.