DiamondHead Holdings Corp. and Great Southern Homes Announce Closing of Business Combination to Form United Homes Group, Inc.
DiamondHead Holdings Corp. ("DiamondHead")(NASDAQ:DHHC), a special purpose acquisition company, and Great Southern Homes, Inc. ("Great Southern Homes"), one of the largest homebuilders in the Southeast, jointly announced today that they have closed their previously announced business combination. With the closing, DiamondHead Holdings Corp. has been renamed "United Homes Group, Inc." ("United Homes Group" or "the Company"), and its common stock will begin trading on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the ticker symbol "UHG" (NASDAQ:UHG) on March 31, 2023.
Great Southern Homes is one of the largest homebuilders in the Southeast, and builds homes in South Carolina and Georgia, and is expanding into North Carolina. Great Southern Homes focuses on the entry level and first time move up home buyer segments, and plans to employ a capital efficient "land-light" operating model that is expected to generate higher returns with lower cyclical risk compared to a traditional homebuilding operating model. Through organic growth, Great Southern Homes has become the 25th ranked starter-home builder and the 41st ranked single-family detached home builder in the United States, respectively, based on 2021 home closings according to Pro Builder's 2022 Housing Giants Report.
Great Southern Homes' Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Michael Nieri, and the current management team of Great Southern Homes will continue on to lead United Homes Group. DiamondHead Co-Chief Executive Officers David Hamamoto and Michael Bayles will join the Company as Directors, while DiamondHead Chief Financial Officer Keith Feldman will join the Company as its Chief Financial Officer.
"Today marks an important milestone in the evolution of our Company," said Michael Nieri, CEO of United Homes Group. "With the closing of our business combination with DiamondHead Holdings Corp., Great Southern Homes becomes United Homes Group, a publicly traded homebuilder with a proven track record of consistent profitability and homebuilding excellence. The Great Southern Homes brand, with hard-won reputation and consumer recognition, will continue as a builder label with United Homes Group. We currently have a strong presence in some of the best markets in the southeast and look forward to expanding our geographic footprint with the proceeds from this transaction. With keen focus on new home affordability, an established track record of success and a wealth of operational expertise, I am confident that United Homes Group can successfully grow its existing operations and expand into new markets."
"We are excited for the opportunities that lie ahead for United Homes Group," said David Hamamoto, director of United Homes Group and former co-CEO of DiamondHead Holdings Corp. "Michael Nieri and his team have built an impressive homebuilding operation, and we look forward to taking the company to the next level through organic expansion and accretive acquisition opportunities made possible by this transaction. The additional capital from the business combination will allow United Homes Group to become a strategic buyer of choice, targeting builders with successful track records in high-growth southeastern markets. United Homes Group will also operate with a land-light strategy, allowing for a more capital efficient homebuilding operation and better risk-adjusted returns for our shareholders. Given this strategic focus, along with the long-term outlook for the homebuilding industry and the favorable growth trajectory of our markets, we are extremely optimistic about the future of United Homes Group."
Advisors
BTIG, LLC served as exclusive sell-side advisor to Great Southern Homes. BTIG, LLC also served as co-financial advisor and co-placement agent to DiamondHead for the financing associated with the transaction. Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP served as legal counsel to Great Southern Homes.
Zelman Partners, a subsidiary of Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD), served as exclusive financial advisor to DiamondHead in connection with the business combination with Great Southern Homes, and as lead financial advisor and lead placement agent to DiamondHead in connection with the financing associated with the transaction. Sullivan & Cromwell LLP served as legal counsel to DiamondHead.
About United Homes Group
United Homes Group is one of the largest homebuilders in the southeast, with an emphasis on affordable entry-level homes. Headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, the Company focuses on high-growth markets within the southeast where rapid population and job growth provide dynamic opportunities. United Homes Group operates with a land-light operating model that is capital efficient, reduces risk, and drives improved returns.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward looking statements generally relate to future events or future performance of the Company. For example, statements regarding anticipated growth in the industry in which the Company operates, anticipated growth in demand for the Company's products, and projections of the Company's future financial results and other metrics, are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "may", "should", "could", "might", "plan", "possible", "project", "strive", "budget", "forecast", "expect", "intend", "will", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe", "predict", "potential" or "continue", or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements.
These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company and its management, are inherently uncertain. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: changes in applicable laws or regulations; the possibility that the Company may be adversely affected by other economic, business, regulatory, and/or competitive factors such as rising interest rates or an economic downturn; the Company's estimates of expenses and profitability; the evolution of the markets in which the Company competes; the ability of the company to implement its strategic initiatives; and other risks and uncertainties set forth in the section entitled "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in DiamondHead's Registration Statement on Form S-4 filed by DiamondHead with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which was declared effective by the SEC on February 14, 2023 (SEC File No. 333-267820) and other risks and uncertainties indicated from the time to time in the other documents to be filed with the SEC by the Company.
Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and the Company assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. The Company does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations.
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