Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

INCOME TAXES

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INCOME TAXES
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
INCOME TAXES INCOME TAXES
Components of the income tax provision are as follows (in thousands):
 
  Years Ended December 31,
  2023 2022 2021
Current taxes:
Federal $ 170,306  $ 246,077  $ 180,469 
State 41,837  54,576  39,930 
212,143  300,653  220,399 
Deferred taxes:
Federal (1,888) (4,573) (4,033)
State 427  1,046  1,024 
(1,461) (3,527) (3,009)
Total $ 210,682  $ 297,126  $ 217,390 

Income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, 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,
  2023 2022 2021
Expected taxes at current federal statutory income tax rate $ 199,380  $ 270,757  $ 200,515 
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit 33,389  43,941  31,967 
Federal tax credits (25,219) (19,676) (20,872)
Non-deductible costs and other 3,132  2,104  5,780 
Income tax expense $ 210,682  $ 297,126  $ 217,390 

The effective tax rate was 22.2%, 23.0%, and 22.8% for 2023, 2022 and 2021, 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, 2023, we have a net deferred tax asset of $47.6 million. We also have other net deferred tax liabilities of $8.0 million. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are comprised of timing differences (in thousands) as follows:
At December 31,
2023 2022
Deferred tax assets:
Real estate $ 27,049  $ 24,199 
Warranty reserve 8,902  8,489 
Wages payable 10,669  8,240 
Equity-based compensation 7,306  6,597 
Accrued expenses 36  114 
Other 7,393  8,650 
Total deferred tax assets 61,355  56,289 
Deferred tax liabilities:
Goodwill 3,331  2,473 
Prepaids 2,288  1,282 
Fixed assets 8,163  7,082 
Total deferred tax liabilities 13,782  10,837 
Deferred tax assets, net 47,573  45,452 
Other deferred tax liabilities - state franchise taxes 8,012  7,351 
Net deferred tax assets and liabilities $ 39,561  $ 38,101 

At December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, 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 NOLs and experiences of utilizing tax credit carry forwards and tax planning alternatives. We have no NOLs or credit carryovers, and determined that no valuation allowance on our deferred tax assets is necessary at December 31, 2023.
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, modified the energy standards required to qualify for the tax credit and increased the per-home credit amount starting in 2023. In accordance with these regulations, we recorded a tax benefit of $22.7 million, $18.9 million, and $16.9 million during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively, based on our estimate for qualifying new energy efficient homes that we closed in those years.

The IRA also created a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax on certain profits and creates a 1% excise tax on stock repurchases. These provisions were effective for us on January 1, 2023 and did not have a material impact on our 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, 2023, we had no remaining un-utilized federal NOL carryforward, federal tax credits, or state NOL carryforwards.
At December 31, 2023, we have no current income taxes receivable and current income taxes payable of $12.2 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, 2023.

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 2019. We have one state income tax examination covering various years pending resolution 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, 2023, 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.