Meritage Homes and Whirlpool Corporation Announce Exclusive Partnership

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May 31, 2012, 10:15 ET

BENTON HARBOR, Mich., May 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Top-10 homebuilder Meritage Homes (NYSE: MTH) recently selected Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) as the exclusive appliance provider to the builder's wide range of homes, including first-time, move-up, luxury and active-adult. Whirlpool Corporation will provide Jenn-Air, KitchenAid, Maytag and Whirlpool brand appliances to Meritage Homes' extensive communities throughout the Southern and Western states.

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"We believe Whirlpool Corporation, and its portfolio of brands, is the best choice for our homebuyers, as well as our business," said Bill Harrill, vice president of national purchasing at Meritage Homes. "With a variety of highly-regarded brands to choose from, Whirlpool's appliance selection meets our homebuyers' varied lifestyle and design needs. Buyers should find their services and products exceptional in quality, and their go-to-market strategy is a strong match with ours, which is key to maintaining our efficient homebuilding schedule."

Meritage Homes will also be one of the first homebuilders in the country to outfit many of its homes with the Whirlpool® Ice Collection, an entirely new kitchen suite of appliances that balances modern cues of metal against sparkling white and black surfaces. The suite is also available in stainless steel.

"Meritage Homes has a solid reputation for building high-quality, energy-efficient homes on schedule. We are honored to be selected as the exclusive appliance partner," said Bob Bergeth, general manager, national contract sales at Whirlpool Corporation. "We're confident this partnership will greatly benefit both companies and, more importantly, Meritage Homes' homebuyers."

About Meritage Homes Corporation

Meritage Homes is the ninth-largest homebuilder in the United States based on homes closed. Meritage builds a variety of homes across the Southern and Western states to appeal to a wide range of buyers, including first-time, move-up, luxury and active adults. As of March 31, 2012, the company had 150 actively selling communities in 15 metropolitan areas, including Northern California, East Bay/Central Valley and Southern California, Houston, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Tucson, Las Vegas, Denver, Orlando, Tampa and Raleigh-Durham.

Meritage was the first large national homebuilder to be 100 percent ENERGY STAR® qualified in every home started since January 1, 2010. Meritage has designed and built nearly 70,000 homes in its 25-year history, and has a reputation for its distinctive style, quality construction, and positive customer experience.

For more information about the company, visit http://investors.meritagehomes.com.

About Whirlpool Corporation

For more than 100 years, Whirlpool Corporation's influence on home and family life has shaped trends in the kitchen, laundry area and beyond. The company strives to exceed expectations with appliances that help building professionals create homes of distinction. Whirlpool Corporation's The Inside Advantage™ Program offers Powerful Brands, Innovative Products, Targeted Services and Market Insight to support building professionals.

Whirlpool Corporation is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, with annual sales of more than $19 billion in 2011, 68,000 employees, and 66 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. For more information on Whirlpool Corporation and its offerings for building professionals, go to insideadvantage.com, call 1-800-952-2537, or visit @InsideAdvantage on Twitter.

SOURCE Whirlpool Corporation