Standard Pacific has wider loss as hurt by charges

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Standard Pacific Corp (SPF.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which builds homes chiefly in the western United States, on Monday reported sharply higher losses on a variety of charges, including ones related to inventory and land deposit write-offs.

The company reported a fourth-quarter loss of $441 million, or $6.80 per share, compared with a loss of $98 million, or $1.53 per share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding impairment and tax valuation allowance charges of $6.87 per share, the company earned 7 cents per share.

"In the face of unprecedented housing market conditions, Standard Pacific delivered measurable progress on our plan to generate cash, pay down dept and improve our liquidity position," Chief Executive Officer Stephen Scarborough said in a release.

The U.S. housing market has been in a tailspin for more than two years, with demand falling and builders cutting prices despite dwindling orders.

Sales of new, U.S. single-family homes plunged 26 percent in 2007, the U.S. Commerce Department reported, falling 4.7 percent in December to an annual rate of 604,000, the slowest pace since 1995.

Standard Pacific's results included $434 million in charges related to inventory and joint venture impairments as well as land deposit write-offs.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson and Ilaina Jonas; Editing by Michael Urquhart)