Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

INCOME TAXES

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INCOME TAXES
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
INCOME TAXES INCOME TAXES
Components of the income tax provision are as follows (in thousands):
 
  Years Ended December 31,
  2022 2021 2020
Current taxes:
Federal $ 246,077  $ 180,469  $ 99,174 
State 54,576  39,930  21,012 
300,653  220,399  120,186 
Deferred taxes:
Federal (4,573) (4,033) (9,725)
State 1,046  1,024  (370)
(3,527) (3,009) (10,095)
Total $ 297,126  $ 217,390  $ 110,091 

Income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, 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,
  2022 2021 2020
Expected taxes at current federal statutory income tax rate $ 270,757  $ 200,515  $ 112,049 
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit 43,941  31,967  16,307 
Federal tax credits (19,676) (20,872) (16,523)
Non-deductible costs and other 2,104  5,780  (1,742)
Income tax expense $ 297,126  $ 217,390  $ 110,091 

The effective tax rate was 23.0%, 22.8%, and 20.6% for 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The rate in all three years reflect a benefit from Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") §45L energy efficient homes credits.
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, 2022, we have a net deferred tax asset of $45.5 million. We also have net deferred tax liabilities of $7.4 million. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are comprised of timing differences (in thousands) as follows:
At December 31,
2022 2021
Deferred tax assets:
Real estate $ 24,199  $ 25,960 
Warranty reserve 8,489  6,273 
Wages payable 8,240  5,834 
Equity-based compensation 6,597  5,465 
Accrued expenses 114  199 
Other 8,650  7,836 
Total deferred tax assets 56,289  51,567 
Deferred tax liabilities:
Goodwill 2,473  1,611 
Prepaids 1,282  2,498 
Fixed assets 7,082  6,786 
Total deferred tax liabilities 10,837  10,895 
Deferred tax assets, net 45,452  40,672 
Other deferred tax liabilities - state franchise taxes 7,351  6,099 
Net deferred tax assets and liabilities $ 38,101  $ 34,573 

At December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, we have no unrecognized tax benefits. We believe 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 the provision for income taxes.
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, 2022.
The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Relief Act of 2020 extended IRC §45L energy efficient homes credit (the "energy tax credit") through the end of 2021. On August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 ("the IRA") retroactively extended the energy tax credit to homes delivered from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2032. 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 $18.9 million during the year ended December 31, 2022, based on our estimate for qualifying new energy efficient homes that we closed in the year. The estimated tax effected benefit is reflected in our effective tax rate reconciliation as the benefit from federal tax credits.

The IRA also modifies the energy standards required to qualify for the tax credit and increases the per-home credit amount starting in 2023, creates a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax on certain profits and creates a 1% excise tax on
stock repurchases. These provisions will be effective for us on January 1, 2023, and we do not expect them to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
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 indefinitely. State NOL carryforwards may be used to offset future taxable income for a period ranging from 5 to 20 years, depending on the state jurisdiction. At December 31, 2022, we had no remaining un-utilized federal NOL carryforward, federal tax credits, or state NOL carryforwards.
At December 31, 2022, we have no current income taxes receivable and current income taxes payable of $12.1 million, which consists of current federal and state tax accruals, net of current energy tax credits and estimated tax payments. This amount is recorded in Accrued liabilities on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2022.

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 2018. 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, 2022, 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.