Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

INCOME TAXES

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INCOME TAXES
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2021
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
INCOME TAXES INCOME TAXES
Components of income tax expense are as follows (in thousands):
 
  Years Ended December 31,
  2021 2020 2019
Current taxes:
Federal $ 180,469  $ 99,174  $ 41,019 
State 39,930  21,012  11,644 
220,399  120,186  52,663 
Deferred taxes:
Federal (4,033) (9,725) (8)
State 1,024  (370) 627 
(3,009) (10,095) 619 
Total $ 217,390  $ 110,091  $ 53,282 

Income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, differ from the expected amounts computed using the federal statutory income tax rate of 21% as a result of the following (in thousands):
  Years Ended December 31,
  2021 2020 2019
Expected taxes at current federal statutory income tax rate $ 200,515  $ 112,049  $ 63,618 
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit 31,967  16,307  9,999 
Federal tax credits (20,872) (16,523) (20,582)
Non-deductible costs and other 5,780  (1,742) 247 
Income tax expense $ 217,390  $ 110,091  $ 53,282 
The effective tax rate was 22.8%, 20.6%, and 17.6% for 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The rates in all three years reflect a benefit from the extension of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") §45L new energy efficient homes credits, and additional energy tax credits obtained by qualifying more homes in open prior tax years. The rate in 2019 also includes the
additional benefit of energy tax credit for the 2018 tax year that was realized in the 2019 tax year due to the retroactive application of the 2019 Act.

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are netted on our balance sheet by tax jurisdiction. Net overall deferred tax assets for all jurisdictions are grouped and included as a separate asset. Net overall deferred tax liabilities for all jurisdictions are grouped and included in Accrued liabilities. At December 31, 2021, we have a net deferred tax asset of $40.7 million. We also have net deferred tax liabilities of $6.1 million. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are comprised of timing differences (in thousands) as follows:
At December 31,
2021 2020
Deferred tax assets:
Real estate $ 25,960  $ 18,710 
Warranty reserve 6,273  5,588 
Wages payable 5,834  7,798 
Equity-based compensation 5,465  7,114 
Accrued expenses 199  193 
Other 7,836  5,498 
Total deferred tax assets 51,567  44,901 
Deferred tax liabilities:
Goodwill 1,611  879 
Prepaids 2,498  1,487 
Fixed assets 6,786  6,495 
Total deferred tax liabilities 10,895  8,861 
Deferred tax assets, net 40,672  36,040 
Other deferred tax liabilities - state franchise taxes 6,099  4,476 
Net deferred tax assets and liabilities $ 34,573  $ 31,564 

At December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, we have no unrecognized tax benefits. We believe that our current income tax filing positions and deductions will be sustained on audit and do not anticipate any adjustments that will result in a material change. Our policy is to accrue interest and penalties on unrecognized tax benefits and include them in federal income tax expense.
We determine our deferred tax assets and liabilities in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes ("ASC 740"). We evaluate our deferred tax assets, including the benefit from net operating losses ("NOLs"), by jurisdiction to determine if a valuation allowance is required. Companies must assess whether a valuation allowance should be established based on the consideration of all available evidence using a “more likely than not” standard with significant weight being given to evidence that can be objectively verified. This assessment considers, among other matters, the nature, frequency and severity of cumulative losses, forecasts of future profitability, the length of statutory carry forward periods, experiences with operating losses and experiences of utilizing tax credit carry forwards and tax planning alternatives. We have no valuation allowance on our deferred tax assets and no NOL carryovers at December 31, 2021.
In December of 2019, Congress passed the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019 as a part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (the "2020 Act") which the President signed into law on December 20, 2019. The 2020 Act further extended the availability of the IRC §45L new energy efficient homes credit (the "energy tax credit") through the end of 2020. The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Relief Act of 2020, signed into law by the President on December 27, 2020 extended the energy tax credit through the end of 2021. Under ASC 740, the effects of the new legislation are recognized in the period that includes the date of enactment, regardless of the retroactive benefit. In accordance with this guidance, we recorded a tax benefit of $16.9 million during the year ended December 31, 2021 based on our estimate for qualifying new energy efficient homes that we closed in 2021. The estimated tax effected benefit is reflected in our effective
tax rate reconciliation as the benefit from federal tax credits. The energy tax credit expired at December 31, 2021, and a benefit for the year-ended December 31, 2022 can only occur with new legislation extending the credit.
Our future deferred tax asset realization depends on sufficient taxable income in the carryforward periods under existing tax laws. Federal NOL carryforwards may be used to offset future taxable income for 20 years. State NOL carryforwards may be used to offset future taxable income for a period of time ranging from 5 to 20 years, depending on the state jurisdiction. At December 31, 2021, we had no remaining un-utilized federal NOL carryforward, federal tax credits, or state NOL carryforwards.
At December 31, 2021, we have a current tax payable of $23.7 million, which consists of current federal and state income tax accruals net of current energy tax credits and estimated tax payments, and is recorded in Accrued liabilities in the accompanying balance sheet. At December 31, 2021, we have no current tax receivables.
We conduct business and are subject to tax in the U.S. both federally and in several states. With few exceptions, we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state, or local income tax examinations by taxing authorities for years prior to 2017. We have no federal or state income tax examinations being conducted at this time.
The future tax benefits from NOLs, built-in losses, and tax credits would be materially reduced or potentially eliminated if we experience an “ownership change” as defined under IRC §382. Based on our analysis performed as of December 31, 2021, we do not believe that we have experienced an ownership change. As a protective measure, our stockholders held a Special Meeting of Stockholders on February 16, 2009 and approved an amendment to our Articles of Incorporation that restricts certain transfers of our common stock. The amendment is intended to help us avoid an unintended ownership change and thereby preserve the value of any tax benefit for future utilization.