First Release Homes

Our roots in homebuilding date back to 1848, when James Laing, John's father, built his first home in the English countryside. After becoming one of Great Britain's most respected builders, John Laing Homes entered the United States market in 1984. WL Homes LLC was formed in April 1998 when John Laing Homes merged with Watt Homes, becoming one of nation's largest homebuilders.Soon after, a deciding moment determined the future path of John Laing Homes. When faced with the option to become a publicly traded company, we chose to remain private. As our reputation for delivering the best new home experience grew, so did the company. In 2006, we partnered with Dubai-based Emaar Properties, one of the world's largest global real estate development companies.Now, as one of the largest privately held homebuilders in the U.S. backed by the strength of a world-leading company, we possess both the resources and the flexibility to respond to the particular needs of our customers, our markets and our industry with greater agility and insight than our more institutional counterparts.