Ryland’s CEO was paid $31.4million in 2006

Ryland Group Inc., a home builder for first-time buyers, paid Chief Executive R. Chad Dreier $31.4 million in 2006 as the stock fell 24%, its biggest decline in more than a decade.

Dreier’s compensation included a salary of $1 million, stock awards worth $5.14 million and $3.6 million in pension benefits, the Calabasas-based company said Monday in a regulatory filing. Dreier also received $7 million for items that included payments to cover taxes on his restricted stock grants.

Ryland cut Dreier’s bonus 21% last year to $11.8 million after pretax income fell, the company said. Net income at Ryland, the 11th-biggest home builder by revenue, declined 20% in 2006 as demand tumbled in the housing slump and the company wrote down the value of property and options for land.

Dreier, 59, also received $2.93 million for meeting performance goals set in the company’s incentive plan, Ryland said in the Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Included in the $7 million that Dreier received was $5.75 million in payments to cover taxes he incurred upon receipt of restricted stock grants. Also included was $12,834 for expenses not covered by Ryland’s health insurance plan, $3,564 for tax assistance and health and fitness costs, and $25,000 that Ryland contributed to a charity that Dreier designated.

Dreier was paid $34.4 million in 2005, including $7.4 million in restricted stock.

Shares of Ryland declined 22 cents to $44.54 on Monday. The stock has fallen 18% this year, compared with a decline of 15% for a Standard & Poor’s measure of home construction companies.