Forestar Group Inc. (FOR) Business

Item 1. Business.

Overview

Forestar Group Inc. is a national, well-capitalized residential lot development company focused primarily on making investments in land acquisition and development to sell finished single-family residential lots to homebuilders. Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the NYSE Texas under the ticker symbol "FOR." The listing and trading of the Common Stock on the NYSE Texas commenced on July 1, 2025. The terms "Forestar," the "Company," "we" and "our" used herein refer to Forestar Group Inc., a Delaware corporation, and its predecessors and subsidiaries.

We conduct a wide range of project planning and management activities related to the entitlement, acquisition, community development and sale of residential lots. We generally secure entitlements while the land is under contract by creating plans that meet the needs of the markets where we operate, and we aim to have all entitlements secured before closing on the investment. Moving land through the entitlement and development process creates significant value. We primarily invest in entitled short-duration projects that can be developed in phases, enabling us to complete and sell lots at a pace that matches market demand, consistent with our focus on maximizing capital efficiency and returns. This strategy is a unique, lower-risk business model that we expect will produce more consistent returns than other public and private land developers. We also make short-term strategic investments in finished lots (lot banking) and undeveloped land (land banking) with the intent to sell these assets within a short time period to utilize available capital prior to its deployment into longer-term lot development projects. For the year ended September 30, 2025, we sold 14,240 lots with an average sales price of $108,400. At September 30, 2025, our lot position consisted of 99,800 residential lots, of which approximately 65,100 were owned and 34,700 were controlled through purchase contracts. Of our 65,100 owned lots, approximately 23,800 lots are under contract to be sold for an aggregate remaining sales price of approximately $2.1 billion.

We have expanded and diversified our lot development operations across 64 markets in 23 states. We believe our geographically diverse operations provide a strong platform for us to consolidate market share in the highly fragmented lot development industry. We also believe our geographic diversification lowers our operational risks and enhances our earnings potential by mitigating the effects of local and regional economic cycles.

Our customers are primarily local, regional and national homebuilders. The lots we deliver in our communities are primarily for entry-level, first-time move-up and active adult homes. Entry-level and first-time move-up homebuyers are the largest segments of the new home market. We also market some of our communities towards build-to-rent operators. We may engage in the development of multifamily sites as market opportunities arise.

Our real estate origins date back to the 1954 incorporation of Lumbermen’s Investment Corporation, which became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the predecessor to Temple-Inland Inc. ("Temple-Inland") in 1971. We changed our name to Forestar Real Estate Group Inc. after Temple-Inland began reporting us as a separate business segment in 2006, and in 2007, Temple-Inland completed a tax-free distribution of our shares to its stockholders, making us an independent publicly-traded company. In 2008, we changed our name from Forestar Real Estate Group Inc. to Forestar Group Inc. We became a majority-owned subsidiary of D.R. Horton, Inc. ("D.R. Horton") in October 2017 by virtue of a merger with a wholly-owned subsidiary of D.R. Horton. Immediately following the merger, D.R. Horton owned 75% of our outstanding common stock, and as of September 30, 2025 they owned approximately 62% of our outstanding common stock. As our controlling shareholder, D.R. Horton has significant influence in guiding our strategic direction and operations. In connection with the merger, we entered into certain agreements with D.R. Horton including a Stockholder’s Agreement (as amended, the "Stockholder's Agreement"), a Master Supply Agreement and a Shared Services Agreement. Under the terms of the Master Supply Agreement, we supply finished lots to D.R. Horton at market terms offered by Forestar and both companies identify land development opportunities to expand our portfolio of assets.

We manage our operations through our real estate segment. Our national footprint provides diversification in our real estate investments and our sources of revenues and earnings. At September 30, 2025, we conducted our operations in the states and markets listed below.

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When evaluating new or existing markets for purposes of capital allocation, we consider local, market-specific factors, including, among others:

•economic conditions;

•employment levels and job growth;

•housing demand and affordability;

•availability of land and lots in desirable locations at acceptable terms;

•land entitlement and development processes;

•availability of qualified subcontractors;

•new and secondary home sales activity;

•competition; and

•performance capabilities of our local management teams.

Business Operations

The majority of our real estate projects are single-family residential communities. We primarily purchase land in the open market and install the necessary infrastructure to develop the land into finished residential lots for single-family homes. Our customers are primarily local, regional and national homebuilders. Our managers are responsible for the following activities related to our land and lot acquisition and development activities:

•site selection, which involves:

–a feasibility study;

–soil and environmental reviews;

–review of existing zoning and other governmental requirements;

–review of the need for and extent of offsite work required to obtain project entitlements and to complete necessary infrastructure; and

–financial analysis of the potential project;

•negotiating land acquisition, lot purchase and related contracts;

•obtaining all necessary land development approvals;

•selecting land development subcontractors and ensuring their work meets our contracted scopes;

•planning and managing land development schedules;

•determining the sales pricing for each lot in a given project;

•developing and implementing marketing and sales plans; and

•coordinating all interactions with customers throughout the lot sale process.

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Our corporate executives and corporate office personnel provide control and oversight functions to many important risk elements in our operations, including:

•allocation of capital;

•cash management;

•review and approval of business plans and budgets;

•review, approval and funding of land and lot acquisitions (Board of Directors must approve certain acquisitions as provided in our certificate of incorporation and the Stockholder's Agreement);

•environmental assessments of land and lot acquisitions;

•review of all business and financial analysis for potential land and lot inventory investments;

•oversight of land and lot inventory levels;

•monitoring and analysis of profitability, returns and costs; and

•review of major personnel decisions and incentive compensation plans.

Our corporate executives and office personnel are responsible for establishing our operational policies and internal control standards and monitoring compliance with established policies and controls throughout our operations. We have a Shared Services Agreement with D.R. Horton whereby D.R. Horton provides us with certain administrative, compliance, operational and procurement services. Our corporate executives and office personnel are responsible for, and provide oversight and review for, the following shared services performed by D.R. Horton:

•finance and treasury;

•information technology;

•internal audit;

•investor relations; and

•human resources, payroll and employee benefits.

We have a Master Supply Agreement with D.R. Horton which establishes our business relationship with D.R. Horton as both companies identify residential real estate opportunities. The agreement provides D.R. Horton the right of first offer to purchase, at market prices and terms offered by Forestar, up to 100% of the lots from D.R. Horton sourced projects, up to 50% of the lots in the first phase of a Forestar sourced project and up to 50% of the lots in any subsequent phase in which D.R. Horton purchases at least 25% of the lots in the previous phase. D.R. Horton has no such rights on third-party sourced development opportunities. The Master Supply Agreement continues until the earlier of (i) the date at which D.R. Horton owns less than 15% of our voting shares or (ii) June 29, 2037; however, we may terminate the agreement at any time when D.R. Horton owns less than 25% of our voting shares.

Our Stockholder's Agreement with D.R. Horton and our certificate of incorporation define D.R. Horton’s right to nominate members to our Board, require D.R. Horton’s consent for certain transactions and establish an investment committee, which is authorized to approve certain new investments. D.R. Horton has the right to nominate a number of our Board members commensurate with its equity ownership. As long as D.R. Horton owns at least 20% of our voting securities, it retains the right to nominate individuals to our Board based on its equity ownership as well as designate the Executive Chairman.

As long as D.R. Horton owns at least 35% of our voting securities, we must obtain D.R. Horton’s consent to (i) issue any new class of equity or shares of our common stock in excess of certain amounts; (ii) incur, assume, refinance or guarantee debt that would increase our total leverage to greater than 40%; (iii) select, terminate, remove or change compensation arrangements for the Executive Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer and other key senior management; and (iv) make certain acquisitions or investments.

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Land/Lot Acquisition and Inventory Management

We acquire land for use in our development operations after we have completed due diligence and obtained the development rights (known as entitlements). Before we acquire lots or tracts of land, we complete a feasibility study, which includes soil tests, independent environmental studies, other engineering work and financial analysis. We also evaluate the status of necessary zoning and other governmental entitlements required to develop the property for home construction. Although we purchase and develop land primarily to sell finished lots to homebuilders, we may sell land where we have excess land positions or for other strategic reasons.

We also enter into land purchase contracts, whereby we obtain the right, but generally not the obligation, to buy land at predetermined prices on a defined schedule commensurate with planned development. These contracts generally are non-recourse, which limits our financial exposure to our earnest money deposited into escrow under the terms of the contract and any pre-acquisition due diligence costs we incur. This enables us to control land with limited capital investment.

We attempt to mitigate our exposure to real estate inventory risks by:

•managing our supply of land and lots owned and controlled through purchase contracts in each market based on anticipated future demand;

•monitoring local market and demographic trends that affect housing demand;

•limiting the size of our land development projects and focusing on short duration projects;

•acquiring land entitled for single-family residential housing and managing our development in phases;

•focusing on developing lots for entry-level housing, the segment where housing demand has been the highest;

•developing the majority of our lots for a known buyer; and

•geographically diversifying our land portfolio.

Land Development

Substantially all of our land development work is performed by subcontractors. Subcontractors typically are selected after a competitive bidding process pursuant to a contract that obligates the subcontractor to complete the scope of work at an agreed-upon price and within a specified time frame. We monitor land development activities, participate in major decisions, coordinate the activities of subcontractors and suppliers, review the work of subcontractors for quality and cost controls and monitor compliance with building codes or other regulations.

We typically do not maintain inventories of land development materials except for work-in-progress materials for active development projects. Generally, the materials used in our operations have been readily available from numerous sources. The cost and availability of certain materials, especially steel, transformers, concrete, and petroleum-based materials, is influenced by changes in local and global commodity prices and capacity as well as government regulation, such as government-imposed tariffs or trade restrictions on supplies such as steel. Construction time for our lots depends on the availability of labor, materials and supplies, the weather, and other factors.

We are subject to governmental regulations that affect our land development operations. In recent years, municipalities and other government agencies were frequently delayed in granting the proper approvals to us, which delayed our development activities in certain markets.

In select situations, we contract with D.R. Horton for land development services, generally in geographic markets where we do not have established development teams and capabilities.

Lot/Land Banking

In addition to our residential lot development activities, we also make strategic short-term investments in finished lots (lot banking) and undeveloped land (land banking) with the intent to sell these assets within a short time period, primarily to D.R. Horton, utilizing available capital prior to its deployment into longer term lot development projects. We manage our level of lot/land banking relative to short-term liquidity and expected future cash requirements for lot development projects.

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Cost Controls

We control development costs by designing our communities efficiently and by obtaining competitive bids for materials and labor. We monitor our land development expenditures versus budgets for each project, and we review our inventory levels, margins, expenses, profitability and returns for each project compared to its business plan and our performance expectations.

We control overhead costs by centralizing certain accounting and administrative functions, monitoring staffing and compensation levels and applying technology to business processes to improve productivity where practical. We review other general and administrative costs to identify efficiencies and savings opportunities in our operating divisions and our regional and corporate offices.

Competition

We face significant competition for the acquisition, development and sale of real estate in our markets. Our major competitors include numerous local, regional, and national developers, including home builders. Competition also exists for investment opportunities, financing, available land, raw materials and labor. Some of our real estate competitors are well established and financially strong, may have greater financial, marketing and other resources than we do, or may be larger than us and/or have lower cost of capital and operating costs than we have and expect to have. The presence of competition may increase the bargaining power of property owners seeking to sell. These competitive market pressures can sometimes make it difficult to acquire, develop or sell land and lots at prices that meet our return criteria.

The land and lot acquisition and development business is highly fragmented, and we are unaware of any meaningful concentration of national market share by any one competitor. Enterprises of varying sizes, from individuals or small companies to large corporations, actively engage in the real estate development business. Many competitors are local, privately-owned companies. We have a few regional and national land developer competitors in addition to national homebuilders that may develop lots on which they construct and sell homes. During periods when access to capital is restricted, participants in a weaker financial condition tend to be less active.

Sales Contracts and Backlog

Our lot sales contracts require an earnest money deposit, which can vary in amount across our markets and communities. We have the right to either retain or refund customer deposits on canceled lot purchase contracts, depending upon the applicable provisions of the contract or other circumstances. The length of time between the signing of a lot sales contract and delivery of the lot to the customer (closing) is generally from three to eighteen months. At September 30, 2025, our lots owned included approximately 23,800 lots (37%) that were under contract to be sold, of which approximately 22,800 lots are under contract to D.R. Horton.

Seasonality

Although the growth of our business and significant changes in market conditions have impacted our seasonal patterns in the past and could do so again in the future, we generally deliver more lots and generate greater revenues and pre-tax income in the fourth quarter of our fiscal year. As a result of seasonal activity, our quarterly results of operations and financial position at the end of a particular fiscal quarter are not necessarily representative of the balance of our fiscal year.

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Human Capital Resources

People and Culture

We have increased our number of employees from 393 at September 30, 2024 to 433 at September 30, 2025 to support the growth of our residential lot development business across a geographically diversified platform. At September 30, 2025, 340 of our employees worked in our regional and divisional offices and 93 worked at our corporate office. In fiscal 2025, our total cost for employee compensation and benefits was $105.3 million. In addition to our employees, we also have a Shared Services Agreement with D.R. Horton whereby D.R. Horton employees provide us with certain administrative, compliance, operational and procurement services.

We believe the people who work for our company are our most important resources and are critical to our continued success. We focus significant attention toward attracting and retaining talented and experienced individuals to manage and support our operations. Our people are expected to exhibit and promote honest, ethical and respectful conduct in the workplace. All of our employees must certify to their understanding of and adhere to a code of conduct that sets standards for appropriate behavior and includes required internal training on preventing, identifying, reporting and stopping any type of discrimination.

Recruitment, Development and Retention

We are committed to hiring, developing and supporting an energetic workforce and maintaining a productive, positive and inclusive workplace. We believe that when people feel included and have ample opportunities for professional growth, they bring forward a variety of perspectives and ideas that strengthen our company. Through our Shared Services Agreement, with D.R. Horton, we leverage their recruiting team that partners with college campuses and external organizations to identify promising new talent and established professionals. Through our paid internship program, college students and recent graduates gain valuable experience working alongside some of the most experienced professionals in the land development industry. Management is committed to supporting the development of our employees in many ways including onboarding programs, training and providing employees exposure to senior management. Our management team also supports a culture of developing future leaders from our existing workforce, enabling us to promote from within for many leadership positions. We believe this provides long-term focus and continuity to our operations while also providing opportunities for the growth and advancement of our employees. During fiscal 2025, 40 employees were placed into new leadership positions in our regional and divisional offices, and of those, 78% were promoted from within the organization.

Compensation and Benefits

We believe our compensation package and benefits are competitive with others in our industry. In addition to base pay, eligible employees may participate in our incentive bonus and stock compensation plans, which align their compensation to the interests of our shareholders. We also offer our employees a broad range of benefits, including paid vacation, holidays, sick time and parental leave; medical, dental and vision healthcare insurance; and life insurance and disability coverage. Additional benefits offered include a 401(k) savings plan, employee stock purchase plan and access to professional resources to support employees with their mental and physical health, financial planning, identity theft protection and legal needs. We are committed to supporting our employees in their health, wellness and financial planning goals. We host events and challenges, both virtually and in person, to encourage our employees to stay active and healthy. Additional information about our employee benefit plans is included in Note 11 to the accompanying financial statements.

Workplace Safety and Wellness

The safety and well-being of our employees are our first priority. We take workplace safety seriously at our development sites and in our offices. Our organization strives for a zero-incident safety culture and full compliance with safety regulations. We provide certification training to our field personnel through an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) authorized third-party vendor. We also provide our teams with many safety resources, including safety checklists, policies, procedures, best practices, and communicate with our employees through a monthly safety newsletter to inform and reinforce our commitment to and concern for their well-being. We also require personal protective equipment, such as hard hats, high-visibility safety wear and hearing and eye protection be worn as necessary to meet OSHA requirements. Additionally, because substantially all of our land development work is performed by subcontractors, we require that they maintain their own safety programs as well.

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Governmental Regulation and Environmental Matters

Our operations are subject to extensive and complex regulations. We, and our subcontractors, must comply with many federal, state and local laws and regulations including, but not limited to, zoning, permitting, density and development, building, environmental, advertising, labor and real estate sales. These regulations and requirements affect substantially all aspects of our land development and sales processes in varying degrees across our markets. Our properties are subject to inspection and approval by local authorities where required and may be subject to various assessments for schools, parks, streets, utilities and other public improvements. We may experience delays in receiving the proper approvals from local authorities that could delay our anticipated development activities in certain projects.

Our land development activities are also subject to an extensive array of local, state and federal statutes, ordinances, rules and regulations concerning the protection of health, safety and the environment. Compliance requirements for each site vary greatly according to location, environmental condition and the present and former uses of the site and adjoining properties. We believe that we are in compliance in all material respects with existing environmental regulations applicable to our business. Additionally, our compliance with such regulations has not had, nor is it expected to have, a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. However, changes in regulations, such as the climate-related disclosure legislation recently enacted by the State of California could increase our costs to comply with such regulations, as discussed in "Item 1A. Risk Factors."

Available Information

Our principal executive offices are located at 2221 E. Lamar Blvd., Suite 790, Arlington, Texas 76006. Our telephone number is (817) 769-1860.

On the Investor Relations section of our website, www.forestar.com, you may obtain additional information about us, including:

•our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and other documents as soon as reasonably practicable after we file them with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC");

•copies of certain agreements with D.R. Horton, including the Stockholder’s Agreement and Master Supply Agreement;

•beneficial ownership reports filed by officers, directors, and principal security holders under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (or the "Exchange Act"); and

•corporate governance information that includes our:

–corporate governance guidelines,

–audit committee charter,

–compensation committee charter,

–nominating and governance committee charter,

–standards of business conduct and ethics,

–environmental policy,

–human rights policy,

–code of ethics for senior financial officers, and

–information on how to communicate directly with our Board of Directors.

We will also provide printed copies of any of these documents to any stockholder free of charge upon request. The SEC also maintains a website (www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information that is filed electronically with the SEC.