Meritage Homes Honored With Fourth Consecutive ENERGY STAR(R) Partner of the Year -- Sustained Excellence Award for Its Leadership in Advancing Energy Efficient Homebuilding

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SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- (Marketwired) -- 03/28/16 --  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized Meritage Homes (NYSE: MTH) with a 2016 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Award for continued leadership in protecting our environment through superior energy efficiency achievements. This is the sixth year that Meritage Homes has been recognized as a leader in the EPA's ENERGY STAR for Homes Program and fourth year for Meritage Homes to be honored for sustained leadership in protecting the environment.

"Meritage Homes values our partnership with ENERGY STAR and we are honored to once again receive this prestigious award. The EPA's recognition represents significant effort at every level of our organization to set the standard nationally for innovation, promotion, training, quality control, and customer service," said C.R. Herro, Vice President of Environmental Affairs for Meritage Homes.

Since 2010, Meritage Homes has championed the ENERGY STAR Certified Homes program as the recommended baseline for new homes, and approximately 90% of the homes Meritage delivered in 2015 significantly exceeded ENERGY STAR standards, some by as much as three times the benchmark energy savings. Meritage Homes is being recognized for its continued commitment to educating its employees, industry stakeholders, and the public about the value of energy-efficient construction.

With guidance and support from the ENERGY STAR program, Meritage Homes achieved many sustainability goals in 2015, including:

  • Completing more than 5,800 ENERGY STAR certified homes in 2015, which are estimated to save more than 47 million kWh of electricity, eliminate over 72 million pounds of CO2, and reduce homeowner utility bills by approximately $5.7 million annually.
  • Achieving an average Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index Score of 60 for all homes rated in 2015.
  • Developing new ventilation strategies to reduce humidity and HVAC demand, and partnering with Indoor airPLUS to pilot new home builder sales training programs.
  • Building cost-effective Zero Energy homes at a community scale, and developing utility best practices to serve zero energy communities in the future. 
  • Working with utilities to develop advanced load leveling strategies to improve the value of energy efficiency to all stakeholders. 
  • Implementing a comprehensive, multi-tiered public awareness campaign that encompassed innovative on-site learning centers, online educational content, and extensive community outreach to promote the overall benefits of energy efficiency.

ENERGY STAR and its partners have helped prevent a total of more than 2.4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions since its inception in 1992. In 2014 alone, ENERGY STAR and its partners provided more than $11 billion in societal benefits due to reducing damages from climate change.

"By continued collaboration with ENERGY STAR, Meritage Homes is helping Americans save money, save energy, and do their part to reduce our nation's greenhouse gas emissions that exacerbate climate change," said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. "I'm proud to recognize Meritage Homes with the highest form of ENERGY STAR recognition, as the winner of the 2016 Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Award. Meritage Homes demonstrates a strong commitment to energy efficiency and to preserving a healthy planet for future generations." 

As an ENERGY STAR partner since 2001, Meritage Homes will be honored for its long-term commitment to energy efficiency at the 2016 ENERGY STAR Awards Ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 13, 2016.

The 2016 Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Awards are given to a variety of organizations to recognize their contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through superior energy efficiency achievements. These winners have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by setting and achieving aggressive goals, and employing innovative energy efficiency approaches. These awards recognize ongoing leadership across the ENERGY STAR program, including energy-efficient products, services, new homes, and buildings in the commercial, industrial, and public sectors.

For a complete list of 2016 winners and information, and more information about ENERGY STAR's awards program, visit www.energystar.gov/awardwinners.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes is the seventh-largest public homebuilder in the United States, based on homes closed in 2015. Meritage Homes builds and sells single-family homes for first-time, move-up, luxury and active adult buyers across the Western, Southern and Southeastern United States. Meritage Homes builds in markets including Sacramento, San Francisco Bay area, southern coastal and Inland Empire markets in California; Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin and San Antonio, Texas; Phoenix/Scottsdale, Green Valley and Tucson, Arizona; Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado; Orlando, Tampa and south Florida; Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; Greenville-Spartanburg and York County, South Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; and Atlanta, Georgia.

Meritage Homes has designed and built more than 90,000 homes in its 30-year history, and has a reputation for its distinctive style, quality construction, and positive customer experience. Meritage Homes is the industry leader in energy-efficient homebuilding and has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence Award in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 for innovation and industry leadership in energy efficient homebuilding. For more information, visit meritagehomes.com.

About ENERGY STAR

ENERGY STAR® is the simple choice for energy efficiency achievements. For more than 20 years, people across America have looked to EPA's ENERGY STAR program for guidance on how to save energy, save money, and protect the environment. Behind each blue label is a product, building, or home that is independently certified to use less energy and cause fewer of the emissions that contribute to climate change. Today, ENERGY STAR is the most widely recognized symbol for energy efficiency in the world, helping families and businesses save $362 billion on utility bills, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by two billion metric tons since 1992. Join the millions who are already making a difference at energystar.gov.

Contacts
Meritage Homes Corporation
Brent Anderson
972-580-6360
VP Investor Relations
media@meritagehomes.com

or

ENERGY STAR Brand Manager
Kristinn Leonhart
202-343-9062
Leonhart.Kristinn@epa.gov

Source: Meritage Homes Corporation

Released March 28, 2016