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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2012
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

The accompanying unaudited interim financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies described in the financial statements and related notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011 (“2011 Form 10-K”) and should be read in conjunction with such financial statements and related notes. The 2011 year end consolidated balance sheet data included in this Form 10-Q filing was derived from the audited financial statements in our 2011 Form 10-K, but does not include all disclosures required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). The following notes to these interim financial statements highlight significant changes to the notes included in the December 31, 2011 audited financial statements included in our 2011 Form 10-K and present interim disclosures as required by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In order to conform with GAAP, we, in preparation of our financial statements, are required to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of June 30, 2012 and December 31, 2011, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011. Actual results could differ from those estimates. In our opinion, the accompanying unaudited interim financial statements reflect all adjustments necessary for a fair statement of our financial position as of June 30, 2012 and December 31, 2011, and the results of our operations and comprehensive income for each of the three and six months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, and our cash flows for each of the six months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, and all adjustments are of a normal recurring nature.

 

Investment in Real Estate and Depreciation

The results of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012 includes $227 and $1,286, respectively, which should have been recorded as depreciation and amortization expense during previous periods. Management evaluated these depreciation and amortization expense adjustments and believes they are not material to the results of the current periods or projected annual results or any previous annual or quarterly period.

IRS Tax Refund

On August 24, 2009, we received a private letter ruling from the IRS granting favorable loss treatment under Sections 331 and 336 of the Code on the tax liquidation of one of our former taxable REIT subsidiaries. On November 6, 2009, legislation was signed that allowed businesses with net operating losses for 2008 or 2009 to carry back those losses for up to five years. As a result, we received a refund from the IRS of $40,418 in the fourth quarter of 2009 (the “Refund”) in connection with this tax liquidation. As previously reported, the IRS examination team, which is required by statute to review all refund claims in excess of $2,000 on behalf of the Joint Committee on Taxation, indicated to us that it disagrees with certain of the property valuations we obtained from an independent valuation expert in support of our fair value of the liquidated taxable REIT subsidiary and our claim for the Refund. We have reached a preliminary written agreement with the regional office of the IRS on a proposed adjustment to the Refund. The total agreed-upon adjustment to taxable income was $13,700, which equates to approximately $4,800 of taxes owed. We must also pay accrued interest which approximates $500 as of June 30, 2012. During the three months ended June 30, 2012, the Operating Partnership recorded a charge of $5,300 related to the preliminary agreed-upon adjustment which is reflected as a component of income tax expense.

The settlement amount is subject to final review and approval by the Joint Committee on Taxation. There can be no assurance that the settlement amount will be approved at the level we currently anticipate, nor can we provide an estimate of the timing of the final approval.

In addition, we are currently in discussions with the regional office of the IRS to determine the timing of the impact of the proposed tax settlement on the tax liability of the limited partners of the Operating Partnership and the stockholders of the Company.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Fair Value Measurements

In May 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2011-04, “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (Topic 820)—Amendments to Achieve Common Fair Value Measurement and Disclosure Requirements in U.S. GAAP and IFRS” (“ASU 2011-04”). ASU 2011-04 clarifies the application of existing fair value measurement requirements, changes certain principles related to measuring fair value and requires additional disclosures about fair value measurements. Specifically, the guidance provides that the concepts of highest and best use and valuation premise in a fair value measurement are only relevant when measuring the fair value of nonfinancial assets and are not relevant when measuring the fair value of financial assets and liabilities. Required disclosures are expanded under the new guidance, especially for fair value measurements that are categorized within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy, for which quantitative information about the unobservable inputs used, and a narrative description of the valuation processes in place and sensitivity of recurring Level 3 measurements to changes in unobservable inputs are required. Entities are also required to disclose the categorization by level of the fair value hierarchy for items that are not measured at fair value in the balance sheet but for which the fair value is required to be disclosed. ASU 2011-04 is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2011, and is to be applied prospectively. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on our financial statements.