2. Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Boston Properties, Inc. does not have any other significant assets, liabilities or operations, other than its investment in the Operating Partnership, nor does it have employees of its own. The Operating Partnership, not Boston Properties, Inc., generally executes all significant business relationships other than transactions involving securities of Boston Properties, Inc. All majority-owned subsidiaries and joint ventures over which the Company has financial and operating control and variable interest entities ("VIE"s) in which the Company has determined it is the primary beneficiary are included in the consolidated financial statements. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The Company accounts for all other unconsolidated joint ventures using the equity method of accounting. Accordingly, the Company’s share of the earnings of these joint ventures and companies is included in consolidated net income.

The accompanying interim financial statements are unaudited; however, the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America for interim financial information and in conjunction with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Accordingly, they do not include all of the disclosures required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting solely of normal recurring matters) necessary for a fair statement of the financial statements for these interim periods have been included. The results of operations for the interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results to be obtained for other interim periods or for the full fiscal year. The year-end consolidated balance sheet data was derived from audited financial statements, but does not include all disclosure required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s financial statements and notes thereto contained in the Company’s Annual Report in the Company’s Form 10-K for its fiscal year ended December 31, 2014.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The Company follows the authoritative guidance for fair value measurements when valuing its financial instruments for disclosure purposes. The Company determines the fair value of its unsecured senior notes using market prices. The inputs used in determining the fair value of the Company’s unsecured senior notes are categorized at a level 1 basis (as defined in the accounting standards for Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures) due to the fact that the Company uses quoted market rates to value these instruments. However, the inputs used in determining the fair value could be categorized at a level 2 basis (as defined in the accounting standards for Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures) if trading volumes are low. The Company determines the fair value of its mortgage notes payable using discounted cash flow analyses by discounting the spread between the future contractual interest payments and hypothetical future interest payments on mortgage debt based on current market rates for similar securities. In determining the current market rates, the Company adds its estimates of market spreads to the quoted yields on federal government treasury securities with similar maturity dates to its debt. The inputs used in determining the fair value of the Company’s mortgage notes payable and mezzanine notes payable are categorized at a level 3 basis (as defined in the accounting standards for Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures) due to the fact that the Company considers the rates used in the valuation techniques to be unobservable inputs.

Because the Company’s valuations of its financial instruments are based on these types of estimates, the actual fair values of its financial instruments may differ materially if the Company’s estimates do not prove to be accurate. The following table presents the aggregate carrying value of the Company’s indebtedness and the Company’s corresponding estimate of fair value as of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 (in thousands):



	March 31, 2015				December 31, 2014
	Carrying Amount		Estimated Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Estimated Fair Value
Mortgage notes payable	$	4,289,120	$	4,428,519	$	4,309,484	$	4,449,541
Mezzanine notes payable	309,475		306,143		309,796		306,156
Unsecured senior notes	5,288,101		5,749,666		5,287,704		5,645,819
Total	$	9,886,696	$	10,484,328	$	9,906,984	$	10,401,516

The Company uses interest rate swap agreements to manage its interest rate risk. The valuation of these instruments is determined using widely accepted valuation techniques including discounted cash flow analysis on the expected cash flows of each derivative. This analysis reflects the contractual terms of the derivatives, including the period to maturity, and uses observable market-based inputs, including interest rate curves. To comply with the provisions of ASC 820, the Company incorporates credit valuation adjustments to appropriately reflect both its own nonperformance risk and the respective counterparty’s nonperformance risk in the fair value measurements. Although the Company has determined that the majority of the inputs used to value its derivatives fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy, the credit valuation adjustments associated with its derivatives utilize Level 3 inputs, such as estimates of current credit spreads to evaluate the likelihood of default by the Company and its counterparties. However, as of March 31, 2015, the Company has assessed the significance of the impact of the credit valuation adjustments on the overall valuation of its derivative positions and has determined that the credit valuation adjustments are not significant to the overall valuation of its derivatives. As a result, the Company has determined that its derivative valuations in their entirety are classified in Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

On April 10, 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2014-08, "Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity" (“ASU 2014-08”). ASU 2014-08 clarifies that discontinued operations presentation applies only to disposals representing a strategic shift that has (or will have) a major effect on an entity’s operations and financial results (e.g., a disposal of a major geographical area, a major line of business, a major equity method investment or other major parts of an entity). ASU 2014-08 is effective prospectively for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2014. Early adoption is permitted, and the Company early adopted ASU 2014-08 during the first quarter of 2014. The Company’s adoption of ASU 2014-08 resulted in the operating results and gain on sale of real estate from the operating property sold during the three months ended March 31, 2015 not being reflected as Discontinued Operations in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations (See Note 3).

In February 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-02, “Consolidation (Topic 810): Amendments to the Consolidation Analysis” (“ASU 2015-02”). ASU 2015-02 affects reporting entities that are required to evaluate whether they should consolidate certain legal entities. ASU 2015-02 modifies the evaluation of whether limited partnerships and similar legal entities are VIEs or voting interest entities, eliminates the presumption that a general partner should consolidate a limited partnership and affects the consolidation analysis of reporting entities that are involved with VIEs, particularly those that have fee arrangements and related party relationships. ASU 2015-02 is effective for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015. Early adoption is permitted. A reporting entity may apply the amendments in ASU 2015-02 using: (a) a modified retrospective approach by recording a cumulative-effect adjustment to equity as of the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption; or (b) by applying the amendments retrospectively. The Company is currently assessing the potential impact that the adoption of ASU 2015-02 will have on its consolidated financial statements.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-03, "Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs" ("ASU 2015-03"), which requires that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts. The recognition and measurement guidance for debt issuance costs is not affected. ASU 2015-03 is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years and shall be applied on a retrospective basis, wherein the balance sheet of each individual period presented should be adjusted to reflect the period-specific effects of applying the new guidance. Early adoption is permitted for financial statements that have not been previously issued. The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2015-03 to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements.