Bloomfield Hills, Mich., Sept. 12, 2007 – Pulte Homes operations have ranked highest in customer satisfaction in 11 U.S. markets, as reported today in the results of the J.D. Power and Associates® 2007 New Home-Builder Customer Satisfaction Studysm.
Pulte brands, which include Pulte Homes, Del Webb and DiVosta, were surveyed in 26 of the 34 markets covered in the 2007 study. Pulte Homes operations garnered 11 top rankings in customer satisfaction, and were ranked No. 2 in nine markets and No. 3 in six markets.
In the J.D. Power and Associates® 2007 New Home-Builder Customer Satisfaction Studysm, Pulte Homes operations ranked:
Highest in these 11 markets: Albuquerque, Central Valley (Calif.), Chicago (Del Webb), Ft. Myers/Naples, Houston, Jacksonville, L.A./Ventura, Orlando, Palm Beach (DiVosta), Philadelphia (Del Webb) and Tucson (Del Webb)
Second in these nine markets: Chicago (tie), Ft. Myers/Naples (DiVosta), Inland Empire (Calif. – Del Webb), Las Vegas (Del Webb), Minneapolis, Phoenix (Del Webb), San Antonio, Tampa Bay (DiVosta) and Tucson
Third in these six markets: Denver/Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, Sacramento, San Francisco, Tampa Bay and Washington D.C. (tie)
“It's rewarding to continue to be recognized by our homeowners for our ongoing commitment to customer satisfaction, especially in today's challenging housing environment,” said Richard J. Dugas, Jr., CEO of Pulte Homes. “The Pulte Homes team strives to deliver exceptional quality in our new homes, and we put great effort into understanding what our buyers look for in a home's layout, function and visual appeal.”
Pulte Homes maintains a comprehensive system for communicating with customers to ensure their questions are answered and their needs are being met throughout the entire sales, home completion and delivery process.
For its 2007 New Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study, J.D. Power and Associates® focused on individuals that purchased a new single family detached or attached home during 2006. Qualifying builders in each market had to have a minimum of 150 home closings in the prior year and a minimum of 50 returned questionnaires.
Pulte Homes does not operate in three markets included in this year's survey – Columbus, OH, Myrtle Beach, SC, and Fresno, Calif., and did not meet the sample size requirement in the Charleston, SC, Nashville, Tenn., or the Orange County, Bakersfield or San Diego, Calif. markets.
This year's homebuilder rankings also included new studies which evaluated homebuyers' satisfaction with new-home quality, new-home design and builder mortgage origination. Pulte Homes' market operations earned:
• Top rankings for new-home quality in eight of markets
• Top rankings for new-home design in nine markets;
• Top rankings for builder mortgage origination in three markets
The New-Home Design Study assesses builders' home designs through homebuyer evaluations of the overall appeal and function of the home. Rankings are based on a 1,000-point index score which evaluates design elements in seven categories: exterior architectural design, windows and exterior doors, interior comfort and environment, floor plan and layout, kitchen, master/primary bathroom, and flooring.
The New-Home Quality Study evaluates builders on a 1,000-point index score based on eight categories of problem types - home exterior, kitchen, bathroom, windows and doors, electrical and appliances, flooring and stairs, drywall, and interior paint. The index is adjusted to account for problem volume (number of problems), problem severity (impact to customer), and home size.
The Builder Mortgage Originator Study offers insight into customer satisfaction with builders' mortgage operations. Rankings are based on a 1,000-point index score, evaluating aspects of the mortgage origination process in the categories of application/approval process, loan officer/representative, and closing.
About Pulte Homes
Pulte Homes, Inc., based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., is a FORTUNE 200 company with operations in 51 markets and 26 states. In 2006, it delivered 41,487 homes and generated consolidated revenues of $14.3 billion. During its 57-year history, the company has constructed nearly 500,000 homes. Since 2000, Pulte Homes operations have earned more top-three finishes than any other homebuilder in the annual J.D. Power and Associates® New Home-Builder Customer Satisfaction Studysm. Under its Del Webb brand, Pulte is the nation's largest builder of active adult communities for people age 55 and better. Its DiVosta brand is renowned in Florida for its Built Solid™ building system and distinctive master-planned communities. Pulte Mortgage LLC is a nationwide lender offering Pulte customers a wide variety of loan products and superior service.
J.D. POWER AND ASSOCIATES® is a registered trademark of J.D. Power and Associates of Westlake Village, California and is used herein to describe and convey purely factual information, events, and material as a protected fair use under the trademark laws of the United States and other laws. No association, sponsorship, or affiliation exists between Pulte Homes, Inc. and the named trademark owner and no suggestion of such a sponsorship between Pulte Homes, Inc. and the named trademark owner is made, express or implied.
