Meritage Homes Divisions Receive 2013 ENERGY STAR Leadership in Housing Awards

SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- (Marketwired) -- 07/03/13 -- Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE: MTH), a leading U.S. homebuilder, was awarded the 2013 ENERGY STAR® Leadership in Housing across all 14 of the company's divisions for Meritage's important contributions to energy-efficient construction and environmental protection, in addition to sponsorship of local programs that support these activities. This is the fourth consecutive year that all Meritage divisions have received these awards.

"We are committed to leading the homebuilding industry toward higher standards for energy efficiency and support the EPA's development of progressive standards through its ENERGY STAR Certified Homes Program," said Steve Hilton, Meritage Homes' chairman and chief executive officer. "Meritage has raised the bar by designing homes that consume half the amount of energy of homes built to current building codes. We believe this is the way homes can and should be built, and we intend to continue to provide leadership in this direction."

Every Meritage home has been built to exceed ENERGY STAR requirements since 2010, by integrating advanced technologies into their design and building from the ground up. Together, these technologies can save homeowners, on average, 50 percent on their home energy use, compared to standard homes.

In addition to Leadership in Housing awards from 2010-2013, Meritage was previously recognized with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2013 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year-Sustained Excellence Award, 2011 Energy Star Builder of the Year award and in 2010 was a Building America Partner with the Department of Energy.

About Meritage Homes Corporation
Meritage Homes is the ninth-largest public homebuilder in the United States, based on 4,238 homes closed in 2012. Meritage builds and sells single-family homes for first-time, move-up, luxury and active adult buyers across the Western, Southern and Southeastern United States. As of March 31, 2013, the company had 168 actively selling communities in markets including Sacramento, San Francisco's East Bay, the Central Valley and Southern California; Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin and San Antonio, Texas; Phoenix/Scottsdale and Tucson, Arizona; Las Vegas, Nevada; Denver, Colorado; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina.

Meritage has designed and built more than 75,000 homes in its 27-year history, and has a reputation for its distinctive style, quality construction, and positive customer experience. Meritage is the industry leader in energy efficient homebuilding and in 2013, Meritage received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence Award, for its innovation and industry leadership in energy efficient homebuilding. Meritage was the first national homebuilder to be 100 percent ENERGY STAR® qualified in every home it builds, and far exceeds ENERGY STAR standards today.

For more information, visit meritagehomes.com.