Exhibit 23.1

                              CONSENT OF KPMG LLP


The Board of Directors
Meritage Corporation:

We consent to incorporation by reference in Registration Statement No. 333-_____
on  Form  S-8 of  Meritage  Corporation  (previously  known  as  Monterey  Homes
Corporation) of our report dated February 4, 1999,  relating to the consolidated
balance sheets of Meritage  Corporation and subsidiaries as of December 31, 1998
and 1997 and the related  consolidated  statements  of  earnings,  stockholders'
equity  and cash  flows for each of the  years in the  three-year  period  ended
December 31, 1998 which  appears in the December 31, 1998 annual  report on Form
10-K of Meritage Corporation.



KPMG LLP

Phoenix, Arizona
April 1, 1999