MDC Holdings loss deeper than expected

(New throughout)

BOSTON, April 24 (Reuters) - U.S. home builder MDC Holdings Inc (MDC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) reported a deeper-than-expected net loss in the first quarter, as it wrote down the value of land and homes in process and saw revenue tumble 45 percent.

The company recorded a net loss of $72.8 million, or $1.58 per share, versus a loss of $94.4 million, or $2.07 per share, a year earlier. The loss in the most recent quarter included $54.8 million of asset impairments and $1.7 million in write-offs for options on land it no longer plans to acquire.

Analysts on average had expected a loss of 92 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Revenue came to $406.1 million, down 45 percent from $745.1 million a year ago.

As the United States endures its worst housing slump in decades, homebuilders have faced falling demand and scrambled to get out of contracts on land they no longer wish to acquire.

Shares of the Denver-based company fell 62 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $42.86 on the New York Stock Exchange. So far this year, they are up 15 percent, compared with a 12 percent rebound in the Dow Jones U.S. home builders index .DJUSHB. (Reporting by Scott Malone, editing by Dave Zimmerman)