Texas is the fastest-growing state in the nation in jobs and population.

And the state has two of the country’s biggest home construction markets: the D-FW area and Houston. No doubt that’s a chief reason two out-of-state homebuilders recently purchased Dallas-area firms.

In January, Arizona-based Taylor Morrison bought Darling Homes (DAR), one of the D-FW area’s largest and best-known independent builders.

And this month, Dallas-based LionsGate Homes was acquired by Ryland Group (RYL), a California company that’s one of the nation’s largest homebuilders.

The LionsGate purchase “represents a significant expansion for us in the D-FW area,” said Drew Mackintosh, Ryland Group’s vice president of investor relations. “At closing, LionsGate provided us with 843 lots and 17 active communities.”