UPDATE 1-Meritage Homes CEO pay halved in 2008
* Meritage Homes CEO awarded about $2 mln pay in 2008
* Meritage Homes CEO's 2009 base salary lowered
* M/I Homes CEO awarded $2.2 mln pay in 2008
April 2 (Reuters) - U.S. homebuilder Meritage Homes Corp (MTH.N) said Chief Executive Steven Hilton's compensation was more than halved to about $2 million in 2008, and he has taken a cut in his 2009 base salary.
According to a proxy filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Hilton's 2008 base salary was $1,017,500, unchanged from 2007. He was awarded $208,602 in stock, while option awards were lower by about $2.1 million at $756,439.
Hilton's all other compensation fell $1.6 million to $48,892 in 2008. His 2009 base salary was reduced to $800,000.
The U.S. homebuilding industry has been floundering amid a nationwide slump rooted in rampant risky mortgage practices, but exacerbated more recently by rising unemployment and a deepening recession.
M/I Homes Inc (MHO.N) CEO Robert Schottenstein was awarded about $2.2 million in 2008. The company also switched to a discretionary bonus system for 2009, instead a pay out based on pre-determined, objective performance goal.
Given the prevailing market conditions, selecting specific, objective performance goals at the beginning of 2009 would be difficult, M/I Homes said. (Reporting by Amulya Nagaraj in Bangalore; Editing by Ratul Ray Chaudhuri)
