10-Q 1 d10q.htm FORM 10-Q Form 10-Q
Table of Contents

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 10-Q

 

 

(Mark One)

x Quarterly Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

For the quarterly period ended June 30, 2008

or

 

¨ Transition Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

For the transition period from              to             

Commission file number 1-14760

 

 

RAIT FINANCIAL TRUST

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Maryland   23-2919819

State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

 

2929 Arch Street, 17th Floor, Philadelphia, PA   19104
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

(215) 243-9000

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    x  Yes    ¨  No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act:

 

Large accelerated filer   x    Accelerated filer   ¨
Non-accelerated filer   ¨  (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)    Smaller reporting company   ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    ¨  Yes    x  No

A total of 63,810,889 common shares of beneficial interest, par value $0.01 per share, of the registrant were outstanding as of August 4, 2008.

 

 

 


Table of Contents

RAIT FINANCIAL TRUST

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

     Page
PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1.   Financial Statements (unaudited)   
  Consolidated Balance Sheets as of June 30, 2008 and December 31, 2007    1
  Consolidated Statements of Operations for the Three-Month and Six-Month Periods Ended June 30, 2008 and 2007    2
  Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for the Three-Month and Six-Month Periods Ended June 30, 2008 and 2007    3
  Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Six-Month Periods Ended June 30, 2008 and 2007    4
  Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements    5
Item 2.   Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations    24
Item 3.   Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk    50
Item 4.   Controls and Procedures    50
PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1.   Legal Proceedings    51
Item 1A.   Risk Factors    51
Item 4.   Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders    52
Item 6.   Exhibits    52
  Signatures    53


Table of Contents

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. - Financial Statements

RAIT Financial Trust

Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share information)

 

     As of
June 30,
2008
    As of
December 31,
2007
 

Assets

    

Investments in mortgages and loans, at amortized cost

    

Commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans

   $ 2,119,407     $ 2,189,939  

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables

     3,813,542       4,065,083  

Allowance for losses

     (55,473 )     (26,389 )
                

Total investments in mortgages and loans

     5,877,476       6,228,633  

Investments in securities and security-related receivables ($3,082,530 and $2,776,833, respectively, at fair value)

     3,082,530       3,827,800  

Investments in real estate interests

     270,578       284,252  

Cash and cash equivalents

     59,183       127,987  

Restricted cash

     216,892       298,433  

Accrued interest receivable

     100,935       110,287  

Other assets

     41,736       70,725  

Deferred financing costs, net of accumulated amortization of $4,206 and $3,800, respectively

     33,068       53,340  

Intangible assets, net of accumulated amortization of $77,609 and $64,444, respectively

     42,958       56,123  
                

Total assets

   $ 9,725,356     $ 11,057,580  
                

Liabilities and Shareholders’ equity

    

Indebtedness

    

Repurchase agreements

   $ 47,106     $ 138,788  

Secured credit facilities and other indebtedness

     151,523       146,916  

Mortgage-backed securities issued

     3,564,475       3,801,959  

Trust preferred obligations ($259,111 at fair value as of June 30, 2008)

     259,111       450,625  

CDO notes payable ($1,100,972 at fair value as of June 30, 2008)

     2,532,222       5,093,833  

Convertible senior notes

     404,000       425,000  
                

Total indebtedness

     6,958,437       10,057,121  

Accrued interest payable

     68,900       65,947  

Accounts payable and accrued expenses

     15,464       19,197  

Derivative liabilities

     201,078       201,581  

Deferred taxes, borrowers’ escrows and other liabilities

     100,196       104,821  

Distributions payable

     29,350       28,068  
                

Total liabilities

     7,373,425       10,476,735  

Minority interest

     474,397       1,602  

Shareholders’ equity

    

Preferred shares, $0.01 par value per share, 25,000,000 shares authorized;

    

7.75% Series A cumulative redeemable preferred shares, liquidation preference $25.00 per share, 2,760,000 shares issued and outstanding

     28       28  

8.375% Series B cumulative redeemable preferred shares, liquidation preference $25.00 per share, 2,258,300 shares issued and outstanding

     23       23  

8.875% Series C cumulative redeemable preferred shares, liquidation preference $25.00 per share, 1,600,000 shares issued and outstanding

     16       16  

Common shares, $0.01 par value per share, 200,000,000 shares authorized, 63,808,255 and 61,018,231 issued and outstanding, including 122,192 and 225,440 unvested restricted share awards, respectively

     637       607  

Additional paid in capital

     1,602,649       1,575,979  

Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)

     (132,455 )     (440,039 )

Retained earnings (deficit)

     406,636       (557,371 )
                

Total shareholders’ equity

     1,877,534       579,243  
                

Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity

   $ 9,725,356     $ 11,057,580  
                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

 

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Table of Contents

RAIT Financial Trust

Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share information)

 

      For the Three-Month
Periods Ended June 30
    For the Six-Month
Periods Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

Revenue:

        

Investment interest income

   $ 177,318     $ 233,899     $ 362,608     $ 439,066  

Investment interest expense

     (119,823 )     (180,770 )     (252,848 )     (339,901 )

Provision for losses

     (25,310 )     (845 )     (35,583 )     (4,563 )
                                

Net investment income

     32,185       52,284       74,177       94,602  

Rental income

     3,860       2,612       7,708       5,024  

Fee and other income

     4,594       1,683       12,003       9,564  
                                

Total revenue

     40,639       56,579       93,888       109,190  

Expenses:

        

Compensation expense

     8,436       5,796       16,605       14,172  

Real estate operating expense

     3,875       2,690       7,360       5,278  

General and administrative expense

     6,910       5,786       11,723       12,069  

Depreciation expense

     1,385       1,103       2,766       1,871  

Amortization of intangible assets

     6,094       14,289       13,165       28,578  
                                

Total expenses

     26,700       29,664       51,619       61,968  
                                

Income before other income (expense), taxes and discontinued operations

     13,939       26,915       42,269       47,222  

Interest and other income

     59       4,891       1,172       9,356  

Losses on sale of assets

     (142 )     (2,760 )     (142 )     (2,760 )

Gains on extinguishment of debt

     8,662       —         8,662       —    

Change in fair value of free-standing derivatives

     —         1,846       (37,203 )     5,042  

Change in fair value of financial instruments

     97,056       —         352,906       —    

Unrealized gains (losses) on interest rate hedges

     (66 )     429       15       517  

Equity in income (loss) of equity method investments

     981       (4 )     944       (8 )

Asset impairments

     (9,629 )     —         (20,323 )     —    

(Income) loss allocated to minority interest

     4,712       (6,111 )     (99,347 )     (11,875 )
                                

Income before taxes and discontinued operations

     115,572       25,206       248,953       47,494  

Income tax benefit

     2,293       4,657       2,434       5,080  
                                

Income from continuing operations

     117,865       29,863       251,387       52,574  

Income from discontinued operations

     —         52       —         208  
                                

Net income

     117,865       29,915       251,387       52,782  

Income allocated to preferred shares

     (3,415 )     (2,527 )     (6,821 )     (5,046 )
                                

Net income available to common shares

   $ 114,450     $ 27,388     $ 244,566     $ 47,736  
                                

Earnings per share—Basic:

        

Continuing operations

   $ 1.84     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  

Discontinued operations

     —         —         —         —    
                                

Total earnings per share—Basic

   $ 1.84     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  
                                

Weighted-average shares outstanding—Basic

     62,350,803       60,937,911       61,593,350       60,539,584  
                                

Earnings per share—Diluted:

        

Continuing operations

   $ 1.83     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  

Discontinued operations

     —         —         —         —    
                                

Total earnings per share—Diluted

   $ 1.83     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  
                                

Weighted-average shares outstanding—Diluted

     62,426,136       61,185,851       61,633,724       60,801,424  
                                

Distributions declared per common share

   $ 0.46     $ 0.84     $ 0.92     $ 1.64  
                                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

 

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Table of Contents

RAIT Financial Trust

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands)

 

      For the Three-Month
Periods Ended June 30
    For the Six-Month
Periods Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

Net income

   $ 117,865     $ 29,915     $ 251,387     $ 52,782  

Other comprehensive income (loss)

        

Change in fair value of interest rate hedges

     39,119       119,079       585       107,220  

Reclassification adjustments associated with unrealized losses (gains) from interest rate hedges included in net income

     66       (429 )     (15 )     (517 )

Realized (gains) losses on interest rate hedges reclassified to earnings

     2,405       (1,875 )     4,915       (3,082 )

Change in fair value of available-for-sale securities

     (5,838 )     (101,654 )     (12,530 )     (100,544 )

Realized (gains) losses on available-for-sale securities reclassified to earnings

     2,728       2,760       4,542       2,760  
                                

Total other comprehensive income (loss) before minority interest allocation

     38,480       17,881       (2,503 )     5,837  

Allocation to minority interest

     (826 )     5,222       (433 )     (3,743 )
                                

Total other comprehensive income (loss)

     37,654       23,103       (2,936 )     2,094  
                                

Comprehensive income

   $ 155,519     $ 53,018     $ 248,451     $ 54,876  
                                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

 

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Table of Contents

RAIT Financial Trust

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands)

 

      For the Six-Month
Periods Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007  

Operating activities:

    

Net income

   $ 251,387     $ 52,782  

Adjustments to reconcile net income to cash flow from operating activities:

    

Minority interest

     99,347       11,875  

Provision for losses

     35,583       4,563  

Amortization of deferred compensation

     4,453       5,737  

Depreciation and amortization

     15,931       30,551  

Amortization of deferred financing costs and debt discounts

     7,272       16,384  

Accretion of discounts on investments

     (3,329 )     (4,245 )

Losses on sale of assets

     142       2,760  

Gains on extinguishment of debt

     (8,662 )     —    

Change in fair value of financial instruments

     (352,906 )     —    

Unrealized gains on interest rate hedges

     (15 )     (517 )

Equity in (income) loss of equity method investments

     (944 )     8  

Asset impairments

     20,323       —    

Unrealized foreign currency gains on investments

     (313 )     (1,479 )

Changes in assets and liabilities:

    

Accrued interest receivable

     8,869       (16,424 )

Other assets

     22,050       5,087  

Accrued interest payable

     2,953       4,952  

Accounts payable and accrued expenses

     (1,135 )     (5,415 )

Deferred taxes, borrowers’ escrows and other liabilities

     (18,137 )     (4,703 )
                

Cash flows from operating activities

     82,869       101,916  

Investing activities:

    

Purchase and origination of securities for investment

     (62,637 )     (1,833,178 )

Proceeds from sale of other securities

     —         606,363  

Purchase and origination of loans for investment

     (60,055 )     (1,076,231 )

Principal repayments on loans

     348,522       515,807  

Investment in real estate interests

     2,139       (64,169 )

Proceeds from dispositions of real estate interests

     26,625       —    

(Increase) decrease in restricted cash

     71,211       (124,152 )

Decrease in warehouse deposits

     —         9,816  
                

Cash flows from investing activities

     325,805       (1,965,744 )

Financing activities:

    

Proceeds from repurchase agreements and other indebtedness

     25,000       1,120,658  

Repayments on repurchase agreements and other indebtedness

     (112,074 )     (1,377,367 )

Proceeds from issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities

     —         616,542  

Repayments on residential mortgage-backed securities

     (242,978 )     (263,064 )

Proceeds from issuance of CDO notes payable

     56,775       1,414,020  

Repayments on CDO notes payable

     (151,512 )     —    

Proceeds from issuance of convertible senior notes

     —         425,000  

Repayments on convertible senior notes

     (11,858 )     —    

Acquisition of minority interest in CDOs

     (70 )     (11,529 )

Distributions to minority interest holders in CDOs

     —         (12,337 )

Payments for deferred costs

     (36 )     (41,849 )

Proceeds from cash flow hedges

     —         1,930  

Common share issuance, net of costs incurred

     22,247       367,284  

Repurchase of common shares

     —         (74,381 )

Distributions paid to preferred shares

     (6,821 )     (5,046 )

Distributions paid to common shares

     (56,151 )     (89,832 )
                

Cash flows from financing activities

     (477,478 )     2,070,029  
                

Net change in cash and cash equivalents

     (68,804 )     206,201  

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period

     127,987       99,367  
                

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period

   $ 59,183     $ 305,568  
                

Supplemental cash flow information:

    

Cash paid for interest

   $ 224,392     $ 299,418  

Cash paid for taxes

     294       12,421  

Non-cash decrease in goodwill

     —         2,761  

Non-cash increase (decrease) in trust preferred obligations

     (88,125 )     (199,648 )

Non-cash increase (decrease) in convertible senior notes from extinguishment of debt

     (9,142 )     —    

Series C preferred shares, net of costs, subscribed as of June 30, 2007

     —         38,340  

Distributions payable

     29,350       51,239  

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

 

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Table of Contents

RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

NOTE 1: RAIT FINANCIAL TRUST

RAIT Financial Trust is a specialty finance company that provides a comprehensive set of debt financing options to the real estate industry, including investors in commercial real estate, real estate investment trusts, or REITs, and real estate operating companies and their intermediaries, throughout the United States and Europe. References to “RAIT”, “we”, “us”, and “our” refer to RAIT Financial Trust and its subsidiaries, unless the context otherwise requires. We manage and invest in commercial mortgages, including whole and mezzanine loans, commercial real estate investments, preferred equity interests, residential mortgage loans, trust preferred securities and subordinated debentures. We originate and invest in real estate-related assets that are underwritten through our integrated investment process. We conduct our business through our subsidiaries, RAIT Partnership, L.P., or RAIT Partnership, and Taberna Realty Finance Trust, or Taberna, as well as through their respective subsidiaries. We and Taberna are self-managed and self-advised Maryland REITs. Our objective is to provide our shareholders with total returns over time, including quarterly distributions and capital appreciation, while seeking to manage the risks associated with our investment strategy.

NOTE 2: SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

a. Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited interim consolidated financial statements have been prepared by management in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in annual consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations, although we believe that the included disclosures are adequate to make the information presented not misleading. The unaudited interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2007 included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K. In the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, necessary to present fairly our consolidated financial position and consolidated results of operations and cash flows are included. The results of operations for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of the results for the full year. Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current period presentation.

b. Principles of Consolidation

The consolidated financial statements reflect our accounts and the accounts of our majority-owned and/or controlled subsidiaries. We also consolidate entities that are variable interest entities, or VIEs, where we have determined that we are the primary beneficiary of such entities. The portions of these entities that we do not own are presented as minority interest as of the dates and for the periods presented in the consolidated financial statements. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

c. Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

d. Investments

We invest in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans, residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables, debt securities and other types of real estate-related assets. We account for our investments in securities under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115, “Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities,” as amended and interpreted, or SFAS No. 115, and designate each investment as a trading security, an available-for-sale security, or a held-to-maturity security based on our intent at the time of acquisition. Under SFAS No. 115, trading securities are recorded at their fair value each reporting period with fluctuations in fair value reported as a component of earnings. Available-for-sale securities are recorded at fair value with changes in fair value reported as a component of other comprehensive income (loss). See “i. Fair Value of Financial Instruments.” Upon the sale of an available-for-sale security, the realized gain or loss on the sale will be recorded as a component of earnings in the respective period. Held-to-maturity investments are carried at amortized cost at each reporting period.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

On January 1, 2008, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standard No. 159, “The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities”, or SFAS No. 159. See “k. Recent Accounting Pronouncements.” In applying SFAS No. 159, we classified certain of our available for sale securities as trading securities on January 1, 2008. Trading securities are carried at their estimated fair value, with changes in fair value reported in earnings.

We account for our investments in subordinated debentures owned by trust VIEs that we consolidate as available-for-sale securities. These VIEs have no ability to sell, pledge, transfer or otherwise encumber the trust or the assets of the trust until such subordinated debenture’s maturity. We account for investments in securities where the transfer meets the criteria as a financing under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 140, “Accounting for Transfers and Servicing of Financial Assets and Extinguishments of Liabilities”, or SFAS No. 140, at amortized cost. Our investments in security-related receivables represent securities that were transferred to issuers of collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, in which the transferors maintained some level of continuing involvement.

We use our judgment to determine whether an investment in securities has sustained an other-than-temporary decline in value. If management determines that an investment in securities has sustained an other-than-temporary decline in its value, the investment is written down to its fair value by a charge to earnings, and we establish a new cost basis for the investment. Our evaluation of an other-than-temporary decline is dependent on the specific facts and circumstances. Factors that we consider in determining whether an other-than-temporary decline in value has occurred include: the estimated fair value of the investment in relation to our cost basis; the financial condition of the related entity; and the intent and ability to retain the investment for a sufficient period of time to allow for recovery of the fair value of the investment.

We account for our investments in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans, other loans and residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables at amortized cost. The carrying value of these investments is adjusted for origination discounts/premiums, nonrefundable fees and direct costs for originating loans which are amortized into income on a level yield basis over the terms of the loans. Mortgage-related receivables represent loan receivables secured by residential mortgages, the legal title to which is held by our consolidated securitizations. These residential mortgages were transferred to the consolidated securitizations in transactions accounted for as financings under SFAS No. 140. Mortgage-related receivables maintain all of the economic attributes of the underlying residential mortgages and all benefits or risks of that ownership inure to the trust subsidiary.

We maintain an allowance for losses on our investments in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans, other loans and residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables. Our allowance for losses is based on management’s evaluation of known losses and inherent risks, for example, historical and industry loss experience, economic conditions and trends, estimated fair values, the quality of collateral and other relevant factors. Specific allowances for losses on our commercial and mezzanine loans are established for impaired loans based on a comparison of the recorded carrying value of the loan to either the present value of the loan’s expected cash flow, the loan’s estimated market price or the estimated fair value of the underlying collateral. Our allowance for loss on residential mortgage loans is evaluated collectively for impairment as the mortgage loans are homogenous pools of residential mortgages. The allowance is increased by charges to operations and decreased by charge-offs (net of recoveries).

e. Transfers of Financial Assets

We account for transfers of financial assets under SFAS No. 140 as either sales or financings. Transfers of financial assets that result in sales accounting are those in which (1) the transfer legally isolates the transferred assets from the transferor, (2) the transferee has the right to pledge or exchange the transferred assets and no condition both constrains the transferee’s right to pledge or exchange the assets and provides more than a trivial benefit to the transferor, and (3) the transferor does not maintain effective control over the transferred assets. If the transfer does not meet these criteria, the transfer is accounted for as a financing. Financial assets that are treated as sales are removed from our accounts with any realized gain (loss) reflected in earnings during the period of sale. Financial assets that are treated as financings are maintained on the balance sheet with proceeds received from the legal transfer reflected as securitized borrowings, or security-related receivables.

f. Revenue Recognition

 

  1)

Net investment income—We recognize interest income from investments in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans, residential mortgages and debt and other securities on a yield to maturity basis. Upon the acquisition of a loan at a discount, we assess the portions of the discount that constitutes accretable yields and non-accretable differences. The accretable yield represents the excess of our expected cash flows from the loan over the amount

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

 

we paid for the loan. That amount, the accretable yield, is accreted to interest income over the remaining life of the loan. Many of our commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans provide for the accrual of interest at specified rates which differ from current payment terms. Interest income is recognized on such loans at the accrual rate subject to management’s determination that accrued interest and outstanding principal are ultimately collectible. Management evaluates loans for non-accrual status each reporting period. Payments received for loans on non-accrual status are applied to principal until the loan is removed from non-accrual status. Past due interest is recognized on non-accrual loans when they are removed from non-accrual status and are making current interest payments. For investments that we did not elect to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159, origination fees and direct loan origination costs are deferred and amortized to net investment income, using the effective interest method, over the contractual life of the underlying loan security or loan, in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 91, “Accounting for Nonrefundable Fees and Costs Associated with Origination or Acquiring Loans and Initial Direct Costs of Leases”, or SFAS No. 91. For investments that we elected to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159, origination fees and direct loan costs are recorded in income and are not deferred. We recognize interest income from interests in certain securitized financial assets on an estimated effective yield to maturity basis. Management estimates the current yield on the amortized cost of the investment based on estimated cash flows after considering prepayment and credit loss experience.

 

  2) Structuring fees—We receive structuring fees for services rendered in connection with the formation of CDO securitization entities. The structuring fee is a contractual fee paid when the related services are completed. The structuring fee is a negotiated fee with the investment bank acting as placement agent for the CDO securities and is capitalized by the securitization entity as a deferred financing cost. We may decide to invest in the debt or equity securities issued by securitization entities. We evaluate our investment in these entities under Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, Interpretation No. 46R, “Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities”, or FIN 46R, to determine whether the entity is a VIE, and, if so, whether or not we are the primary beneficiary. If we are determined to be the primary beneficiary, we will consolidate the accounts of the securitization entity and, upon consolidation, we eliminate intercompany transactions, specifically the structuring fees and deferred financing costs paid. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2007, structuring fees of $5,788 and $11,413, respectively, were received and eliminated upon consolidation of securitization entities. No structuring fees were received during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008.

 

  3) Fee and other income—We generate fee and other income through our various subsidiaries by providing (a) ongoing asset management services to investment portfolios under cancelable management agreements, (b) providing or arranging to provide financing to our borrowers, and (c) providing financial consulting to our borrowers. We recognize revenue for these activities when the fees are fixed or determinable, are evidenced by an arrangement, collection is reasonably assured and the services under the arrangement have been provided. Asset management fees are an administrative cost of a securitization entity and are paid by the administrative trustee on behalf of its investors. These asset management fees are recognized when earned and are paid quarterly. Asset management fees from consolidated CDOs are eliminated in consolidation. During the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we earned $6,710 and $7,160, respectively, of asset management fees, of which we eliminated $4,172 and $5,750, respectively, upon consolidation of CDOs of which we are the primary beneficiary. During the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we earned $14,793 and $12,810, respectively, of asset management fees, of which we eliminated $8,561 and $10,238, respectively, upon consolidation of CDOs of which we are the primary beneficiary.

g. Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We maintain warehouse financing arrangements with various investment banks and engage in CDO securitizations. Prior to the completion of a CDO securitization, our warehouse providers acquire investments in accordance with the terms of the warehouse facilities. We are paid the difference between the interest earned on the investments and the interest charged by the warehouse providers from the dates on which the respective investments were acquired. We bear the first dollar risk of loss, up to our warehouse deposit amount, if (i) an investment funded through the warehouse facility becomes impaired or (ii) a CDO is not completed by the end of the warehouse period, and in either case, the warehouse provider is required to liquidate the securities at a loss. These off-balance sheet arrangements are not consolidated because our risk of loss is generally limited to the cash collateral held by the warehouse providers and our warehouse facilities are not special purpose vehicles. However, since we hold an implicit variable interest in many entities funded under our warehouse facilities, we often consolidate the Trust VIEs while the trust preferred securities, or TruPS, they issue are held on the warehouse lines. These warehouse facilities are considered free-standing derivatives and are recorded at fair value in our financial statements. Changes in fair value are reflected in earnings in the respective period.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

h. Derivative Instruments

We may use derivative financial instruments to hedge all or a portion of the interest rate risk associated with our borrowings. Certain of the techniques used to hedge exposure to interest rate fluctuations may also be used to protect against declines in the market value of assets that result from general trends in debt markets. The principal objective of such agreements is to minimize the risks and/or costs associated with our operating and financial structure as well as to hedge specific anticipated transactions.

In accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 133, “Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities,” as amended and interpreted, or SFAS No. 133, we measure each derivative instrument (including certain derivative instruments embedded in other contracts) at fair value and record such amounts in our consolidated balance sheet as either an asset or liability. For derivatives designated as fair value hedges, derivatives not designated as hedges, or for derivatives designated as cash flow hedges associated with debt for which we elected the fair value option under SFAS No. 159, the changes in fair value of the derivative instrument is recorded in earnings. For derivatives designated as cash flow hedges, the changes in the fair value of the effective portions of the derivative are reported in other comprehensive income. Changes in the ineffective portions of cash flow hedges are recognized in earnings.

i. Fair Value of Financial Instruments

Effective January 1, 2008, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157, “Fair Value Measurements”, or SFAS No. 157, which requires additional disclosures about our assets and liabilities that we measure at fair value. As defined in SFAS No. 157, fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Where available, fair value is based on observable market prices or parameters or derived from such prices or parameters. Where observable prices or inputs are not available, valuation models are applied. These valuation techniques involve management estimation and judgment, the degree of which is dependent on the price transparency for the instruments or market and the instruments’ complexity for disclosure purposes. Beginning in January 2008, assets and liabilities recorded at fair value in the consolidated balance sheets are categorized based upon the level of judgment associated with the inputs used to measure their value. Hierarchical levels, as defined in SFAS No. 157 and directly related to the amount of subjectivity associated with the inputs to fair valuations of these assets and liabilities are as follows:

 

   

Level 1: Valuations are based on unadjusted, quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the measurement date. The types of assets carried at level 1 fair value generally are equity securities listed in active markets. As such, valuations of these investments do not entail a significant degree of judgment.

 

   

Level 2: Valuations are based on quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets or quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active or for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.

Fair value assets and liabilities that are generally included in this category are unsecured REIT note receivables, commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS, receivables, CDO notes payable and certain financial instruments classified as derivatives where the fair value is based on observable market inputs.

 

   

Level 3: Inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or liability, and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the asset or liability. In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement in its entirety falls has been determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. Our assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment, and considers factors specific to the asset. Generally, assets carried at fair value and included in this category are TruPS and subordinated debentures where observable market inputs do not exist.

The availability of observable inputs can vary depending on the financial asset or liability and is affected by a wide variety of factors, including, for example, the type of investment, whether the investment is new, whether the investment is traded on an active exchange or in the secondary market, and the current market condition. To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are less observable or unobservable in the market, the

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

determination of fair value requires more judgment. Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised by us in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in level 3. In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement in its entirety falls is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.

Fair value is a market-based measure considered from the perspective of a market participant who holds the asset or owes the liability rather than an entity-specific measure. Therefore, even when market assumptions are not readily available, our own assumptions are set to reflect those that management believes market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability at the measurement date. We use prices and inputs that management believes are current as of the measurement date, including during periods of market dislocation. In periods of market dislocation, the observability of prices and inputs may be reduced for many instruments. This condition could cause an instrument to be reclassified from Level 1 to Level 2 or Level 2 to Level 3.

Many financial institutions have bid and ask prices that can be observed in the marketplace. Bid prices reflect the highest price that we and others are willing to pay for an asset. Ask prices represent the lowest price that we and others are willing to accept for an asset. For financial instruments whose inputs are based on bid-ask prices, we do not require that fair value always be a predetermined point in the bid-ask range. Our policy is to allow for mid-market pricing and adjusting to the point within the bid-ask range that results in our best estimate of fair value.

Fair value for certain of our Level 3 financial instruments is derived using internal valuation models. These internal valuation models include discounted cash flow analyses developed by management using current interest rates, estimates of the term of the particular instrument, specific issuer information and other market data for securities without an active market. In accordance with SFAS No. 157, the impact of our own credit spreads is also considered when measuring the fair value of financial assets or liabilities, including derivative contracts. Where appropriate, valuation adjustments are made to account for various factors, including bid-ask spreads, credit quality and market liquidity. These adjustments are applied on a consistent basis and are based on observable inputs where available. Management’s estimate of fair value requires significant management judgment and is subject to a high degree of variability based upon market conditions, the availability of specific issuer information and management’s assumptions.

j. Income Taxes

RAIT and Taberna have each elected to be taxed as a REIT and to comply with the related provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Internal Revenue Code. Accordingly, we generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax to the extent of our distributions to shareholders and as long as certain asset, income and share ownership tests are met. If we were to fail to meet these requirements, we would be subject to U.S. federal income tax, which could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and amounts available for distributions to our shareholders. Management believes that all of the criteria to maintain RAIT’s and Taberna’s REIT qualification have been met for the applicable periods, but there can be no assurances that these criteria will continue to be met in subsequent periods.

We maintain various taxable REIT subsidiaries, or TRSs, which may be subject to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes and foreign taxes. Current and deferred taxes are provided on the portion of earnings (losses) recognized by us with respect to our interest in domestic TRSs. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are computed based on temporary differences between the GAAP consolidated financial statements and the federal and state income tax basis of assets and liabilities as of the consolidated balance sheet date. We evaluate the realizability of our deferred tax assets (e.g, net operating loss and capital loss carryforwards) and recognize a valuation allowance if, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of our deferred tax assets will not be realized. When evaluating the realizability of our deferred tax assets, we consider estimates of expected future taxable income, existing and projected book/tax differences, tax planning strategies available, and the general and industry specific economic outlook. This realizability analysis is inherently subjective, as it requires management to forecast our business and general economic environment in future periods. Changes in estimate of deferred tax asset realizability, if any, are included in income tax expense on the consolidated statements of income.

From time to time, these TRSs generate taxable income from intercompany transactions. The TRS entities generate taxable revenue from fees for services provided to CDO entities. Some of these fees paid to the TRS entities are capitalized as deferred financing costs by the CDO entities. Certain CDO entities may be consolidated in our financial statements

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

pursuant to FIN 46R. In consolidation, these fees are eliminated when the CDO entity is included in the consolidated group. Nonetheless, all income taxes are accrued by the TRSs in the year in which the taxable revenue is received. These income taxes are not eliminated when the related revenue is eliminated in consolidation.

Certain TRS entities are domiciled in the Cayman Islands and, accordingly, taxable income generated by these entities may not be subject to local income taxation, but generally will be included in our income on a current basis, whether or not distributed. Upon distribution of any previously included income, no incremental U.S. federal, state, or local income taxes would be payable by us. We maintain a TRS entity in the UK that is subject to income tax in that jurisdiction. In addition, in June 2008, we formed a TRS entity in Ireland which will be subject to income tax in Ireland. The income from these entities is not included in our income for U.S. tax purposes until it is distributed.

k. Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In September 2006, the FASB issued SFAS No. 157, which defines fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The statement also establishes a framework for measuring fair value by creating a three-level fair value hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of information used to determine fair value, and requires new disclosures of assets and liabilities measured at fair value based on their level in the hierarchy. The adoption of SFAS No. 157 did not have a material impact on our approach to fair valuing our assets, derivative instruments and certain liabilities. See further discussion below on the impact of adopting SFAS No. 159.

In February 2007, the FASB issued SFAS No. 159, which provides entities with an irrevocable option to report certain financial assets and liabilities at fair value, with subsequent changes in fair value reported in earnings. The election can be applied on an instrument-by-instrument basis. SFAS No. 159 establishes presentation and disclosure requirements designed to facilitate comparisons between entities that choose different measurement attributes for similar types of assets and liabilities. As of January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS No. 159 and we recorded at fair value certain of our investments in securities, CDO notes payable and trust preferred obligations used to finance those investments and any related interest rate derivatives. Subsequent to January 1, 2008, all changes in the fair value of such investments in securities, CDO notes payable, trust preferred obligations and related interest rate derivatives are recorded in earnings. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008, we recognized an increase in shareholders’ equity of $1,087,394.

The following table presents information about the eligible instruments for which we elected the fair value option and for which adjustments were recorded as of January 1, 2008:

 

     Carrying
Amount as of
December 31,
2007
    Effect from
adoption of
SFAS No. 159
    Carrying
Amount as of
January 1, 2008
(After adoption of
SFAS No. 159)
 

Assets:

      

Trading securities (1)

   $ 2,721,360     $ —       $ 2,721,360  

Security-related receivables

     1,050,967       (99,991 )     950,976  

Deferred financing costs, net of accumulated amortization

     18,047       (18,047 )     —    

Liabilities:

      

Trust preferred obligations

     (450,625 )     52,070       (398,555 )

CDO notes payable

     (3,695,858 )     1,520,616       (2,175,242 )

Deferred taxes and other liabilities

     (6,103 )     6,103       —    
            

Fair value adjustments before allocation to minority interest

       1,460,751    

Allocation of fair value adjustments to minority interest

     —         (373,357 )     (373,357 )
            

Cumulative effect on shareholders’ equity from adoption of SFAS No. 159 (2)

     $ 1,087,394    
            

 

(1) Prior to January 1, 2008, trading securities were classified as available-for-sale and carried at fair value. Accordingly, the election of the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 for trading securities did not change their carrying value and resulted in a reclassification of $310,520 from accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) to retained earnings (deficit) on January 1, 2008.
(2) The $1,087,394 cumulative effect on shareholders’ equity from the adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008 was comprised of a $310,520 increase to accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) and a $776,874 increase to retained earnings (deficit).

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

In December 2007, the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 160, “Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements – an amendment of Accounting Research Bulletin No. 51”, or SFAS No. 160. SFAS No. 160 establishes accounting and reporting standards for ownership interests in subsidiaries held by parties other than the parent, the amount of consolidated net income attributable to the parent and to the noncontrolling interest, changes in a parent’s ownership interest and the valuation of retained noncontrolling equity investments when a subsidiary is deconsolidated. SFAS No. 160 also establishes disclosure requirements that clearly identify and distinguish between the interests of the parent and the interests of the noncontrolling owners. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In February 2008, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. 140-3, “Accounting for Transfers of Financial Assets and Repurchase Financing Transactions”, or FSP No. 140-3. FSP No. 140-3 provides guidance on accounting for a transfer of a financial asset and a repurchase financing. FSP No. 140-3 presumes that an initial transfer of a financial asset and a repurchase financing are considered part of the same arrangement (linked transaction) under SFAS No. 140. However, if certain criteria are met, the initial transfer and repurchase financing shall not be evaluated as a linked transaction and shall be evaluated separately under SFAS No. 140. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2008, the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 161, “Disclosures about Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities – an amendment of SFAS No. 133”, or SFAS No. 161. SFAS No. 161 requires enhanced disclosure related to derivatives and hedging activities and thereby seeks to improve the transparency of financial reporting. Under SFAS No. 161, entities are required to provide enhanced disclosures relating to: (a) how and why an entity uses derivative instruments; (b) how derivative instruments and related hedge items are accounted for under SFAS No. 133 and its related interpretations; and (c) how derivative instruments and related hedged items affect an entity’s financial position, financial performance and cash flows. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In May 2008, the FASB issued Staff Position No. Accounting Principles Board 14-1, “Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments That May Be Settled in Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement)”, or APB 14-1, which clarifies the accounting for convertible debt instruments that may be settled in cash (including partial cash settlement) upon conversion. APB 14-1 requires issuers to account separately for the liability and equity components of certain convertible debt instruments in a manner that reflects the issuer’s nonconvertible debt (unsecured debt) borrowing rate when interest cost is recognized. The equity component is presented in shareholders’ equity and the accretion of the resulting discount on the debt is recognized as part of interest expense in the consolidated statement of operations. APB 14-1 requires retrospective application to the terms of instruments as they existed for all periods presented. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

NOTE 3: INVESTMENTS IN LOANS

Our investments in mortgages and loans are accounted for at amortized cost.

Investments in Commercial Mortgages, Mezzanine Loans and Other Loans

The following table summarizes our investments in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans as of June 30, 2008:

 

      Unpaid
Principal
Balance
    Unamortized
(Discounts)
Premiums
    Carrying
Amount
    Number of
Loans
   Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Range of
Maturity Dates

Commercial mortgages

   $ 1,426,195     $ —       $ 1,426,195     120    7.7 %   Aug. 2008 to
Aug. 2012

Mezzanine loans

     529,297       (3,227 )     526,070     159    10.5 %   Aug. 2008 to
Aug. 2021

Other loans

     177,761       861       178,622     11    6.2 %   Dec. 2008 to
Oct. 2016
                                     

Total

     2,133,253       (2,366 )     2,130,887     290    8.3 %  
                   

Unearned fees

     (11,480 )     —         (11,480 )       
                               

Total

   $ 2,121,773     $ (2,366 )   $ 2,119,407         
                               

The following table summarizes the delinquency statistics of commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans as of June 30, 2008:

 

Delinquency Status

   Principal
Amount

30 to 59 days

   $ 86,041

60 to 89 days

     20,379

90 days or more

     9,350

In foreclosure or bankrupt

     38,858
      

Total

   $ 154,628
      

As of June 30, 2008, approximately $42,250 of our commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans were on non-accrual status and had a weighted-average coupon of 12.2%.

Investments in Residential Mortgages and Mortgage-Related Receivables

The following table summarizes our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables as of June 30, 2008:

 

      Unpaid
Principal
Balance
   Unamortized
(Discount)
    Carrying
Amount
   Number of Loans
and

Mortgage-
Related
Receivables
   Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Average
Contractual
Maturity

Date

3/1 Adjustable rate

   $ 103,434    $ (795 )   $ 102,639    267    5.6 %   August 2035

5/1 Adjustable rate

     3,139,173      (11,653 )     3,127,520    6,507    5.6 %   September 2035

7/1 Adjustable rate

     528,327      (2,911 )     525,416    1,162    5.7 %   July 2035

10/1 Adjustable rate

     58,431      (464 )     57,967    68    5.7 %   June 2035
                                   

Total

   $ 3,829,365    $ (15,823 )   $ 3,813,542    8,004    5.6 %  
                                   

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

Our residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables are pledged as collateral with mortgage securitizations. These mortgage securitizations have issued mortgage-backed securities to finance these obligations with a principal balance outstanding of $3,593,375 as of June 30, 2008. These securitization transactions occurred after the residential mortgages were acquired in whole-loan portfolio transactions. In each of these residential mortgage securitizations, we retained all of the subordinated and non-rated mortgage-backed securities issued. These securitization entities are non-qualified special purpose entities and are considered VIEs. Because we retained all of the subordinated and non-rated residential mortgage-backed securities, or RMBS, issued, we are the primary beneficiary of these entities and consolidate each of the residential mortgage securitization trusts. Approximately 45.1% of our residential mortgage loans were in the state of California as of June 30, 2008.

The following table summarizes the delinquency statistics of our residential mortgage loans as of June 30, 2008:

 

Delinquency Status

   Principal
Amount

30 to 59 days

   $ 37,879

60 to 89 days

     19,152

90 days or more

     37,061

In foreclosure, bankrupt or real estate owned

     86,489
      

Total

   $ 180,581
      

As of June 30, 2008, approximately $142,702 of our residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables were on non-accrual status and had a weighted-average coupon of 5.9%.

For the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, we recorded asset impairments of $8,509 associated with certain investments in commercial and residential loans. In making this determination, management considered the estimated fair value of the investments to our cost basis, the financial condition of the related entity and our intent and ability to hold the investments for a sufficient period of time to recover our investments. For the identified investments, management believes full recovery is not likely and wrote down the investments to their estimated net realizable value.

Allowance For Losses

We maintain an allowance for losses on our investments in commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans, residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables and other real estate related assets. Specific allowances for losses are established for impaired loans based on a comparison of the recorded carrying value of the loan to either the present value of the loan’s expected cash flow, the loan’s estimated market price or the estimated net realizable value of the underlying collateral. The allowance is increased by charges to operations and decreased by charge-offs (net of recoveries). Management’s periodic evaluation of the adequacy of the allowance is based upon expected and inherent risks in the portfolio, historical trends in adjustable rate residential mortgages (if applicable), the estimated value of underlying collateral, and current and expected future economic conditions.

As of June 30, 2008 and December 31, 2007, we maintained an allowance for losses as follows:

 

      As of
June 30,
2008
   As of
December 31,
2007

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables

   $ 16,973    $ 11,814

Commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other real estate related assets

     38,500      14,575
             

Total allowance for losses

   $ 55,473    $ 26,389
             

The following table provides a roll-forward of our allowance for losses for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008:

 

     For The
Three-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008
    For The
Six-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008
 

Balance, beginning of period

   $ 35,675     $ 26,389  

Additions

     25,310       35,583  

Charge-offs

     (5,512 )     (6,499 )
                

Balance, end of period

   $ 55,473     $ 55,473  
                

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

NOTE 4: INVESTMENTS IN SECURITIES

Our investments in securities and security-related receivables are accounted for at fair value. The following table summarizes our investments in securities as of June 30, 2008:

 

Investment Description

   Amortized
Cost
   Net Fair
Value
Adjustments
    Estimated
Fair Value
   Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Weighted
Average
Years to
Maturity

Trading securities (1):

            

TruPS and subordinated debentures

   $ 3,042,503    $ (747,994 )   $ 2,294,509    7.0 %   26.4

Other securities

     10,000      (8,500 )     1,500    7.4 %   44.4
                                

Total trading securities

     3,052,503      (756,494 )     2,296,009    7.0 %   26.4

Available-for-sale securities

     64,704      (18,805 )     45,899    8.7 %   33.5

Security-related receivables (2):

            

TruPS and subordinated debenture receivables

     374,094      (102,372 )     271,722    7.6 %   21.7

Unsecured REIT note receivables

     370,889      (44,022 )     326,867    6.0 %   8.4

CMBS receivables (3)

     213,921      (84,863 )     129,058    5.8 %   34.3

Other securities

     43,506      (30,531 )     12,975    4.8 %   41.7
                                

Total security-related receivables

     1,002,410      (261,788 )     740,622    6.5 %   18.4
                                

Total investments in securities

   $ 4,119,617    $ (1,037,087 )   $ 3,082,530    6.9 %   24.6
                                

 

(1) On January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS No. 159 and transferred certain of our investments in securities from available-for-sale to trading in accordance with SFAS No. 115 and SFAS No. 159. Subsequent to January 1, 2008, all changes in fair value associated with our trading securities are recorded in earnings as part of our change in fair value of financial instruments. See note 7.
(2) Our investments in security-related receivables represent securities owned by CDO entities that we account for as financings under SFAS No. 140. We elected to record security-related receivables at fair value in accordance with SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008. All changes in fair value of our security related receivables were recorded in earnings as part of the change in fair value of financial instruments. See notes 2 and 7.
(3) CMBS receivables include securities with a fair value totaling $90,851 that are rated “BBB+” and “BBB-” by Standard & Poor’s and securities with a fair value totaling $38,207 that are rated between “AA” and “A-” by Standard & Poor’s.

TruPS included above as trading securities include (a) investments in TruPS issued by VIEs of which we are not the primary beneficiary and which we do not consolidate and (b) transfers of investments in TruPS securities to us that were accounted for as a sale pursuant to SFAS No. 140. Subordinated debentures included above represent the primary assets of VIEs that we consolidate pursuant to FIN 46R.

As of June 30, 2008, approximately $311,125 in principal amount of TruPS, subordinated debentures, and subordinated debenture receivables were on non-accrual status and had a weighted-average coupon of 8.2%. As of June 30, 2008, approximately $61,983 in principal amount available-for-sale securities were on non-accrual status and had a weighted-average coupon of 6.5%.

Some of our investments in securities collateralize debt issued through CDO entities. Our TruPS CDO entities are static pools and prohibit, in most cases, the sale of such securities until the mandatory auction call period, typically 10 years from the CDO entity’s inception. At and subsequent to the mandatory auction call date, remaining securities will be offered in the general market and the proceeds from sales of such securities will be used to repay outstanding indebtedness and liquidate the CDO entity. The assets of our consolidated CDOs collateralize the debt of such entities and are not available to our creditors. As of June 30, 2008, investment in securities of $3,221,861 principal amount of TruPS and subordinated debentures and $591,432 principal amount of unsecured REIT note receivables and CMBS receivables collateralized our consolidated CDO notes payable of such entities. Some of these investments were eliminated upon the consolidation of various VIEs that we consolidate and the corresponding subordinated debentures of the VIEs are included as assets in our consolidated balance sheet.

Management evaluates available-for-sale securities for impairment as events and circumstances warrant. As of June 30, 2008, management evaluated these securities and concluded that certain of these securities were other than temporarily impaired as management does not expect full recovery of our investment. Asset impairment expense of $9,627 and $11,814, respectively, was recorded for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 related to these securities and other assets and was included in asset impairments in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. This impairment reduced the amortized cost basis of these available-for-sale securities.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

NOTE 5: INDEBTEDNESS

We maintain various forms of short-term and long-term financing arrangements. Generally, these financing agreements are collateralized by assets within CDOs or mortgage securitizations. The following table summarizes our indebtedness as of June 30, 2008:

 

Description

   Unpaid
Principal
Balance
   Carrying
Amount
   Interest Rate
Terms
    Current
Weighted-
Average
Interest Rate
   Contractual
Maturity

Repurchase agreements

   $ 47,106    $ 47,106    3.2% to 3.7 %   3.3%    Aug. 2008 (1)

Secured credit facilities and other indebtedness

     151,523      151,523    4.5% to 8.1 %   6.1%    Aug. 2008

to 2037

Mortgage-backed securities issued (2)(3)(4)

     3,593,375      3,564,475    4.6% to 5.8 %   5.1%    2035

Trust preferred obligations (5)

     362,500      259,111    4.2% to 10.1 %   6.5%    2035

CDO notes payable – amortized cost(2)(6)

     1,431,250      1,431,250    2.8% to 6.5 %   3.2%    2036 to 2045

CDO notes payable – fair value (2) (5)(7)

     3,646,142      1,100,972    2.7% to 10.0 %   3.8%    2035 to 2038

Convertible senior notes

     404,000      404,000    6.9 %   6.9%    2027
                       

Total indebtedness

   $ 9,635,896    $ 6,958,437      4.7%   
                       

 

(1) We intend to repay or re-negotiate and extend our repurchase agreements as they mature.
(2) Excludes mortgage-backed securities and CDO notes payable purchased by us which are eliminated in consolidation.
(3) Collateralized by $3,829,365 principal amount of residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.
(4) Rates generally follow the terms of the underlying mortgages, which are fixed for a period of time and variable thereafter.
(5) Relates to liabilities for which we elected to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159. See note 7.
(6) Collateralized by $1,720,057 principal amount of commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.
(7) Collateralized by $4,178,391 principal amount of investments in securities and security-related receivables and loans, before fair value adjustments. The fair value of these investments as of June 30, 2008 was $3,085,062. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.

Repurchase Agreements

As of June 30, 2008, we were party to several repurchase agreements that had $47,106 in borrowings outstanding. Our repurchase agreements contain standard market terms and generally renew between one and 30 days. As the assets subject to our repurchase agreements prepay or change in value, we are required to ratably reduce our borrowings outstanding under repurchase agreements. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we repaid $20,807 and $91,682, respectively, associated with our repurchase agreements.

Secured Credit Facilities and Other Indebtedness

We have secured credit facilities with three financial institutions with total capacity of $90,000. As of June 30, 2008, we have borrowed $53,494 on these credit facilities leaving $36,506 of availability. As of June 30, 2008, we have $50,200 of junior subordinated notes issued by us outstanding and $47,829 of other indebtedness outstanding relating to loans payable on consolidated real estate interests and other loans.

Trust Preferred Obligations

As of January 1, 2008, we adopted the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 and elected to record trust preferred obligations at fair value. At adoption, we decreased the carrying amount of the trust preferred obligations by $52,070 to reflect these liabilities at fair value in our financial statements. The change in fair value of the trust preferred obligations was a decrease of $12,887 and $51,319 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively, and was included in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

CDO Notes Payable – Fair Value

As of January 1, 2008, we adopted the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 and elected to record CDO notes payable that are collateralized by trading securities, security-related receivables and loans at fair value. At adoption, we decreased the carrying amount of these CDO notes payable by $1,520,616 to reflect these liabilities at fair value in our financial statements. The change in fair value of these CDO notes payable was a decrease of $143,573 and $946,701 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively, and was included in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

Convertible Senior Notes

During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we repurchased, from the market, a total of $21,000 in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes for a total purchase price of $11,858. As a result, we recorded gains on extinguishment of debt of $8,662, net of $480 deferred financing costs that were written off associated with the convertible senior notes.

NOTE 6: DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

Cash Flow Hedges

We have entered into various interest rate swap contracts to hedge interest rate exposure on CDO notes payable and repurchase agreements.

We designate interest rate hedge agreements at inception and determine whether or not the interest rate hedge agreement is highly effective in offsetting interest rate fluctuations associated with the identified indebtedness. At designation, certain of these interest rate swaps had a fair value not equal to zero. However, we concluded, at designation, that these hedging arrangements were highly effective during their term using regression analysis and determined that the hypothetical derivative method would be used in measuring any ineffectiveness. At each reporting period, we update our regression analysis and, as of June 30, 2008, we concluded that these hedging arrangements were highly effective during their remaining term and used the hypothetical derivative method in measuring the ineffective portions of these hedging arrangements.

The following table summarizes the aggregate notional amount and estimated net fair value of our derivative instruments as of June 30, 2008:

 

      As of June 30, 2008  
   Notional    Fair Value  

Cash flow hedges:

     

Interest rate swaps

   $ 3,692,342    $ (198,789 )

Interest rate caps

     51,000      658  

Basis swaps

     50,000      (187 )

Foreign currency derivatives:

     

Currency options

     6,441      2  
               

Net fair value

   $ 3,799,783    $ (198,316 )
               

The following tables summarize the effect on income by derivative instrument type for the following periods:

 

     For the Three-Month
Period Ended June 30, 2008
    For the Three-Month
Period Ended June 30, 2007
 

Type of Derivative

   Amounts Reclassified to
Earnings for Effective
Hedges – Gains (Losses)
    Amounts Reclassified
to Earnings for
Hedge
Ineffectiveness –
Gains (Losses)
    Amounts
Reclassified to
Earnings for
Effective
Hedges –
Gains (Losses)
   Amounts
Reclassified to
Earnings for
Hedge
Ineffectiveness –
Gains (Losses)
 

Interest rate swaps

   $ (2,405 )   $ (62 )   $ 1,875    $ 483  

Interest rate caps

     —         —         —        (7 )

Basis swaps

     —         —         —        (24 )

Currency options

     —         (4 )     —        (23 )
                               

Total

   $ (2,405 )   $ (66 )   $ 1,875    $ 429  
                               

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

     For the Six-Month
Period Ended June 30, 2008
   For the Six-Month
Period Ended June 30, 2007
 

Type of Derivative

   Amounts Reclassified to
Earnings for Effective
Hedges – Gains (Losses)
    Amounts Reclassified
to Earnings for
Hedge
Ineffectiveness –
Gains (Losses)
   Amounts
Reclassified to
Earnings for
Effective
Hedges –
Gains (Losses)
   Amounts
Reclassified to
Earnings for
Hedge
Ineffectiveness –
Gains (Losses)
 

Interest rate swaps

   $ (4,915 )   $ 10    $ 3,082    $ 585  

Interest rate caps

     —         —        —        (54 )

Basis swaps

     —         —        —        (41 )

Currency options

     —         5      —        27  
                              

Total

   $ (4,915 )   $ 15    $ 3,082    $ 517  
                              

On January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS No. 159 for certain of our CDO notes payable. Upon the adoption of SFAS No. 159, hedge accounting for any previously designated cash flow hedges associated with these CDO notes payable was discontinued and all changes in fair value of these cash flow hedges are recorded in earnings. At the time of hedge accounting discontinuance on January 1, 2008 for these cash flow hedges, the balance included in accumulated other comprehensive income that will be reclassified to earnings over the remaining term of the related hedges was $102,532. As of June 30, 2008, the notional value associated with these cash flow hedges where hedge accounting was discontinued was $2,855,261 and had a liability balance with a fair value of $155,972. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, the change in value of these hedges was a decrease of $31,800 and was recorded as a component of the change in fair value of financial instruments in our statement of operations.

Amounts reclassified to earnings associated with effective cash flow hedges are reported in investment interest expense and the fair value of these hedge agreements is included in other assets or derivative liabilities.

Free-Standing Derivatives

We have maintained warehouse arrangements with various investment banks. These warehouse arrangements are free-standing derivatives under SFAS No. 133. As such, our investment, or first-dollar risk of loss, is recorded at fair value each period with the change in fair value recorded in earnings.

As of June 30, 2008, we maintain a deposit of $6,058 as a first loss deposit on one warehouse facility which has been included in other assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet. We do not expect to recover this deposit and have fully accrued for this loss in other liabilities on the accompanying consolidated balance sheet. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, two of our warehouse facilities were terminated. Due to these events, $32,059 was charged to earnings through the change in fair value of free-standing derivatives during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008. The write-off of these warehouse deposits represents our only exposure under our warehouse agreements and we have no further obligations thereunder.

In addition, the option we provided a warehouse provider for us to provide credit default protection on two reference securities was terminated in May 2008 and we have no further obligation thereunder.

NOTE 7: FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 107, “Disclosure About Fair Value of Financial Instruments”, or SFAS No. 107, requires disclosure of the fair value of financial instruments for which it is practicable to estimate that value. The fair value of investments in mortgages and loans, investments in securities, mortgage-backed securities issued, trust preferred obligations, CDO notes payable, convertible senior notes and derivative liabilities is based on significant observable and unobservable inputs. The fair value of investments in real estate interests, cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, repurchase agreements, secured credit facilities and other indebtedness approximates cost due to the nature of these instruments.

 

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Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

The following table summarizes the carrying amount and the estimated fair value of our financial instruments as of June 30, 2008:

 

Financial Instrument

   Carrying
Amount
   Estimated
Fair Value

Assets

     

Investments in mortgages and loans:

     

Commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans

   $ 2,119,407    $ 2,127,317

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables

     3,813,542      3,298,513

Investments in securities and security-related receivables

     3,082,530      3,082,530

Investments in real estate interests

     270,578      270,578

Cash and cash equivalents

     59,183      59,183

Restricted cash

     216,892      216,892

Derivative assets

     2,762      2,762

Liabilities

     

Indebtedness:

     

Repurchase agreements

     47,106      47,106

Secured credit facilities and other indebtedness

     151,523      151,523

Mortgage-backed securities issued

     3,564,475      3,202,106

Trust preferred obligations

     259,111      259,111

CDO notes payable

     2,532,223      2,062,673

Convertible senior notes

     404,000      222,705

Derivative liabilities

     201,078      201,078

Fair Value Measurements

The following tables summarize information about our assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of June 30, 2008, and indicate the fair value hierarchy of the valuation techniques utilized to determine such fair value:

 

Assets:

   Quoted Prices in
Active Markets for
Identical Assets
(Level 1)
   Significant Other
Observable Inputs
(Level 2)
   Significant
Unobservable Inputs
(Level 3)
   Balance as of
June 30, 2008

Trading securities

           

TruPS and subordinated debentures

   $ —      $ —      $ 2,294,509    $ 2,294,509

Other securities

     —        1,500      —        1,500

Available-for-sale securities

     —        45,899      —        45,899

Security-related receivables

           

TruPS and subordinated debenture receivables

     —        —        271,722      271,722

Unsecured REIT note receivables

     —        326,867      —        326,867

CMBS receivables

     —        129,058      —        129,058

Other securities

     —        12,975      —        12,975
                           

Total assets

   $ —      $ 516,299    $ 2,566,231    $ 3,082,530
                           

 

Liabilities:

   Quoted Prices in
Active Markets for
Identical Assets
(Level 1)
   Significant Other
Observable Inputs
(Level 2)
   Significant
Unobservable Inputs
(Level 3)
   Balance as of
June 30, 2008

Trust preferred obligations

   $ —      $ —      $ 259,111    $ 259,111

CDO notes payable (1)

     —        1,100,972      —        1,100,972

Derivative liabilities

     —        201,078      —        201,078
                           

Total liabilities

   $ —      $ 1,302,050    $ 259,111    $ 1,561,161
                           

 

(1) As of January 1, 2008, we adopted the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 and elected to record CDO notes payable that are collateralized by TruPS, subordinated debentures, unsecured REIT notes receivables, CMBS receivables and other securities at fair value.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

The following tables summarize additional information about assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis for which we have utilized level 3 inputs to determine fair value for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008:

 

Assets

   Trading Securities –
TruPS and
Subordinated
Debentures
    Security-Related
Receivables – TruPS
and Subordinated
Debenture Receivables
    Total
Level 3
Assets
 

Balance, as of December 31, 2007

   $ 2,715,155     $ 425,643     $ 3,140,798  

Cumulative effect from adoption of SFAS No. 159

     —         (17,599 )     (17,599 )

Change in fair value of financial instruments

     (429,864 )     (84,773 )     (514,637 )

Purchases and sales, net

     9,218       (51,549 )     (42,331 )
                        

Balance, as of June 30, 2008

   $ 2,294,509     $ 271,722     $ 2,566,231  
                        

 

Liabilities

   Trust Preferred
Obligations
    Total
Level 3
Liabilities
 

Balance, as of December 31, 2007

   $ 450,625     $ 450,625  

Cumulative effect from adoption of SFAS No. 159

     (52,070 )     (52,070 )

Change in fair value of financial instruments

     (51,319 )     (51,319 )

Purchases and sales, net

     (88,125 )     (88,125 )
                

Balance, as of June 30, 2008

   $ 259,111     $ 259,111  
                

Change in Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The following table summarizes realized and unrealized gains and losses on assets and liabilities for which we elected the fair value option of SFAS No. 159 as reported in change in fair value of financial instruments in the accompanying statements of operations as follows:

 

Description

   For the
Three-Month
Period Ended

June 30, 2008
    For the
Six-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008
 

Change in fair value of trading securities and security-related receivables

   $ (171,331 )   $ (612,605 )

Change in fair value of CDO notes payable and trust preferred obligations

     156,460       998,020  

Change in fair value of derivatives

     111,927       (32,509 )
                

Change in fair value of financial instruments

   $ 97,056     $ 352,906  
                

As of June 30, 2008, we did not have any assets or liabilities measured at fair value on a non-recurring basis.

NOTE 8: SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Preferred Shares

On January 29, 2008, our board of trustees declared a first quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends were paid on March 31, 2008 to holders of record on March 3, 2008 and totaled $3,406.

On April 17, 2008, our board of trustees declared a second quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends were paid on June 30, 2008 to holders of record on June 2, 2008 and totaled $3,406.

On July 29, 2008, our board of trustees declared a third quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends totaling $3,406 will be paid on September 30, 2008 to holders of record on September 2, 2008.

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

Common Shares

On January 8, 2008, the compensation committee of our board of trustees, or the Compensation Committee, awarded 324,200 phantom units, valued at $2,448 using our closing stock price of $7.55, to various non-executive employees. The awards generally vest over four year periods.

On January 24, 2008, 14,457 of our phantom unit awards were redeemed for our common shares. These phantom units were fully vested at the time of redemption.

On March 5, 2008, the Compensation Committee awarded 26,712 phantom units, valued at $175 using our closing stock price of $6.55, to trustees. These awards vest immediately.

On March 25, 2008, our board of trustees declared a quarterly distribution of $0.46 per common share totaling $28,083 that was paid on May 15, 2008 to shareholders of record as of April 4, 2008.

On June 30, 2008, our board of trustees declared a quarterly distribution of $0.46 per common share totaling $29,350 that will be paid on August 12, 2008 to shareholders of record as of July 16, 2008.

We implemented an amended and restated dividend reinvestment and share purchase plan, or DRSPP, effective as of March 13, 2008, pursuant to which we registered and reserved for issuance 10,000,000 common shares. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we issued a total of 2,728,182 common shares pursuant to the DRSPP at a weighted-average price of $8.12 per share and we received $22,150 of net proceeds.

NOTE 9: EARNINGS PER SHARE

The following table presents a reconciliation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007:

 

      For the Three-Month
Periods Ended June 30
    For the Six-Month
Periods Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

Income from continuing operations

   $ 117,865     $ 29,863     $ 251,387     $ 52,574  

Income allocated to preferred shares

     (3,415 )     (2,527 )     (6,821 )     (5,046 )
                                

Income from continuing operations available to common shares

     114,450       27,336       244,566       47,528  

Income from discontinued operations

     —         52       —         208  
                                

Net income available to common shares

   $ 114,450     $ 27,388     $ 244,566     $ 47,736  
                                

Weighted-average shares outstanding—Basic

     62,350,803       60,937,911       61,593,350       60,539,584  

Dilutive securities under the treasury stock method

     75,333       247,940       40,374       261,840  
                                

Weighted-average shares outstanding—Diluted

     62,426,136       61,185,851       61,633,724       60,801,424  
                                

Earnings per share—Basic:

        

Continuing operations

   $ 1.84     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  

Discontinued operations

     —         —         —         —    
                                

Total earnings per share—Basic

   $ 1.84     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  
                                

Earnings per share—Diluted:

        

Continuing operations

   $ 1.83     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  

Discontinued operations

     —         —         —         —    
                                

Total earnings per share—Diluted

   $ 1.83     $ 0.45     $ 3.97     $ 0.79  
                                

 

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Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

For the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, securities convertible into 41,620,647 and 43,178,995 common shares, respectively, were excluded from the earnings per share computations because their effect would have been anti-dilutive. For the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2007, securities convertible into 2,896,161 and 1,644,060 common shares, respectively, were excluded from the earnings per share computations because their effect would have been anti-dilutive.

NOTE 10: RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

In the ordinary course of our business operations, we have ongoing relationships and have engaged in transactions with several related entities described below. All of these relationships and transactions were approved or ratified by a majority of our independent board of trustees as being on terms comparable to those available on an arm’s-length basis from an unaffiliated third party or otherwise not creating a conflict of interest.

Our Chief Executive Officer and a Trustee, Daniel G. Cohen, holds controlling positions in various companies with which we conduct business. Daniel G. Cohen is the majority member of Cohen Brothers LLC d/b/a Cohen & Company, or Cohen & Company, a registered broker-dealer. Each transaction with Cohen & Company is described below:

a). Shared Services—For services relating to structuring and managing our investments in CMBS and RMBS, we pay an annual fee to Cohen & Company ranging from 2 to 20 basis points on the amount of the investments, based on the rating of the security. For investments in residential whole loans, we pay an annual fee of 1.5 basis points on the amount of the investments. In respect of other administrative services, we pay an amount equal to the cost of providing those services plus 10% of such cost. The agreement with Cohen & Company for these services terminated on July 1, 2008 and we did not renew or extend this agreement. During the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we incurred total shared service expenses of $257 and $295, respectively. During the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we incurred total shared service expenses of $519 and $595, respectively. Shared service expenses have been included in general and administrative expense in the accompanying statements of operations.

b). Office Leases—We maintain sub-lease agreements for shared office space and facilities with Cohen & Company. Rent expense during the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007 relating to these leases were $12 and $24, respectively. Rent expense during the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007 relating to these leases were $25 and $41, respectively. Rent expense has been included in general and administrative expense in the accompanying statements of operations. Future minimum lease payments due over the remaining term of the lease are $383.

c). Non-Competition Agreement—As part of the spin-off of Taberna from Cohen & Company in April 2005 and before our acquisition of Taberna in December 2006, Taberna and Cohen & Company entered into a three-year non-competition agreement that ended in April 2008. As part of this agreement, Cohen & Company agreed not to engage in purchasing from, or acting as a placement agent for, issuers of TruPS or other preferred equity securities of real estate investment trusts and other real estate operating companies. Cohen & Company agreed to refrain from acting as asset manager for any such securities. As part of our acquisition of Taberna, we valued this non-competition agreement as an amortizing intangible asset. As of June 30, 2008, the intangible asset has been fully amortized.

d). Common Shares—As of June 30, 2008, Cohen & Company and its affiliate entities owned 510,434 of our common shares.

e). EuroDekania—EuroDekania is an affiliate of Cohen & Company. In September 2007, EuroDekania purchased approximately €10,000 ($13,892) of the subordinated notes and all of the €32,250 ($44,802) BBB-rated debt securities in Taberna Europe CDO II. We invested €17,500 ($24,311) in the total subordinated notes and earn management fees of 35 basis points on the collateral assets owned by this entity. EuroDekania will receive a fee equal to 3.5 basis points of our subordinated collateral management fee which is payable to EuroDekania only if we collect a subordinate management fee and EuroDekania retains an investment in the subordinated notes. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we incurred collateral management fees of $114 and $241, respectively, payable to EuroDekania, which have been included in fee and other income in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

Our Chairman, Betsy Z. Cohen, is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of The Bancorp, Inc., or Bancorp, and Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Bancorp Bank, a commercial bank. Daniel G. Cohen, our Chief Executive Officer and a Trustee, is the Chairman of the Board of Bancorp and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Bancorp Bank. Each transaction with Bancorp is described below:

a). Cash and Restricted Cash—We maintain checking and demand deposit accounts at Bancorp. As of June 30, 2008, we had $1,384 of cash and cash equivalents and $15,879 of restricted cash on deposit at Bancorp. We earn

 

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RAIT Financial Trust

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

As of June 30, 2008

(Unaudited and dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

interest on our cash and cash equivalents at an interest rate of approximately 3.0% per annum. During the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we received $23 and $214, respectively, of interest income from Bancorp. During the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, we received $67 and $481, respectively, of interest income from Bancorp. Restricted cash held at Bancorp relates to borrowers’ escrows for taxes, insurance and capital reserves. Any interest earned on these deposits enures to the benefit of the specific borrower and not to us.

b). Office Leases—We sublease a portion of our downtown Philadelphia office space from Bancorp at an annual rental expense based upon the amount of square footage occupied. We are currently in the process of terminating this sublease agreement at final terms that have not yet been determined. Rent paid to Bancorp was $113 and $238 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2007, respectively, and has been included in general and administrative expense in the accompanying statements of operations.

c). Participation Interests—We funded a $54,000 commercial mortgage during January 2008. At closing, Bancorp purchased a participation interest in this loan for a total commitment of $24,300. We also funded a $70,000 commercial mortgage during January 2008. At closing, Bancorp purchased a participation interest in this loan for a total commitment of $26,500. We paid Bancorp fees of $321 for their services in connection with the closing of these loans.

We had a $3,369 first mortgage loan secured by Pennsview Apartments that has junior lien against it that is held by an entity controlled by Daniel Cohen. Our loan bore interest at a fixed rate of 8.0%, was to mature on March 29, 2008 and was paying in accordance with its terms. In March 2008, we transferred our first mortgage loan to another entity controlled by Mr. Cohen for $3,500, representing the outstanding principal balance of, and accrued interest on, the loan and an exit fee.

Brandywine Construction & Management, Inc., or Brandywine, is an affiliate of Edward E. Cohen, the spouse of Betsy Z. Cohen and father of Daniel G. Cohen. Brandywine provided real estate management services to three properties underlying our real estate interests during the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007. Management fees of $37 and $36 were paid to Brandywine during the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, respectively, relating to those interests. Management fees of $72 and $73 were paid to Brandywine during the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007, respectively, relating to those interests. We believe that the management fees charged by Brandywine are comparable to those that could be obtained from unaffiliated third parties.

NOTE 11: DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS

The following table summarizes revenue and expense information for the one property sold since January 1, 2007:

 

     For the Three-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2007
   For the Six-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2007

Rental income

   $ 510    $ 993

Expenses:

     

Real estate operating expenses

     407      683

Depreciation

     51      102
             

Total expenses

     458      785
             

Income from discontinued operations

   $ 52    $ 208
             

Discontinued operations have not been segregated in the consolidated statements of cash flows. Therefore, amounts for certain captions will not agree with respective data in the consolidated statements of operations.

 

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Board of Trustees and Shareholders of RAIT Financial Trust

We have reviewed the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of RAIT Financial Trust and consolidated subsidiaries as of June 30, 2008 and the related consolidated statements of operations, other comprehensive income and cash flows for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007. These interim financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management.

We conducted our review in accordance with standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). A review of interim financial information consists principally of applying analytical procedures and making inquiries of persons responsible for financial and accounting matters. It is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, the objective of which is the expression of an opinion regarding the financial statements taken as a whole. Accordingly, we do not express such an opinion.

Based on our review, we are not aware of any material modifications that should be made to the accompanying financial statements for them to be in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

We have previously audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), the consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2007, and the related consolidated statements of operations, other comprehensive income (loss), shareholders’ equity and cash flows for the year then ended (not presented herein), and in our report dated February 28, 2008, we expressed an unqualified opinion on those consolidated financial statements. In our opinion, the information set forth in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2007 is fairly stated, in all material respects, in relation to the consolidated balance sheet from which it has been derived.

/s/ Grant Thornton LLP

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

August 4, 2008

 

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Table of Contents
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Forward-Looking Statements

In addition to historical information, this discussion and analysis contains forward-looking statements. These statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology including “may,” “believe,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “continue” or similar words. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, as more particularly set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those described in the “Risk Factors” section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management’s analysis only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to publicly revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date of this report, except as may be required by applicable law.

Overview

We are a specialty finance company that provides a comprehensive set of debt financing options to the real estate industry, including investors in commercial real estate, real estate investment trusts, or REITs, and real estate operating companies and their intermediaries, throughout the United States and Europe. We manage and invest in commercial mortgages, including whole and mezzanine loans, commercial real estate investments, preferred equity interests, residential mortgage loans, trust preferred securities and subordinated debentures. We originate and invest in real estate-related assets that are underwritten through an integrated investment process. We conduct our business through our subsidiaries, RAIT Partnership and Taberna, as well as through their respective subsidiaries. RAIT is a self-managed and self-advised Maryland REIT. Taberna is also a Maryland REIT. Our objective is to provide our shareholders with total returns over time, including quarterly distributions and capital appreciation, while seeking to manage the risks associated with our investment strategy.

In the first six months of 2008, we generated adjusted earnings per diluted share of $1.06 and earnings per diluted share of $3.97. Our investment portfolio continues to generate net investment income which contributed to these results, though changes in fair value of financial instruments resulting from our adoption of SFAS No. 159 described below were an important factor in our financial performance for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008.

We continue to see opportunities for new investments generating favorable returns in our commercial real estate and European portfolios. We originated $388.7 million of gross asset production in these portfolios during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, financed primarily through the sale of loan participations and cash available in our commercial real estate and unconsolidated European collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, that generated fee income for us. In addition, we continued to build relationships with sources of financing while preserving our liquidity.

We continue to focus on managing our liquidity by using financing strategies that preserve our capital and by reducing our exposure to possible margin calls under repurchase agreements. In the first half of 2008, we repaid $91.7 million of repurchase agreement indebtedness through the use of available cash resources, cash flow from operating activities and repayments from investments and we expect to continue to reduce amounts outstanding under our repurchase agreements.

The significant disruptions in the credit markets, abrupt and significant devaluations of assets directly or indirectly linked to the U.S. real estate finance markets, and the attendant removal of liquidity, both long and short term, from the capital markets that began in the second half of 2007 have continued to have an adverse effect on us and companies we finance. We continue to respond to credit deterioration of TruPS issuers primarily in the mortgage finance and homebuilder sectors held by collateralized securitizations we consolidate, which has adversely affected the cash flow we receive from our securitizations and the fair value of their collateral. CMBS financing has become less available as a source of refinancing for our borrowers, which slowed the pace of refinancing by our borrowers while also creating new lending opportunities for us. In addition, we have seen the delinquency rates in our residential mortgage portfolio and commercial real estate loan portfolio increase. While we believe we have made appropriate adjustments to the valuation of our investments and our provision for losses in our residential mortgage and commercial real estate loan portfolios, we cannot assure you that we will not be adversely effected by further similar developments in our investment portfolio.

Prior to January 1, 2008, we recorded certain of our investments in securities and derivatives at fair value. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008, we adjusted the carrying amounts of certain investments in securities, certain CDO notes payable, certain derivative instruments and other assets or liabilities to fair value resulting in an increase to shareholders’ equity of $1.1 billion on January 1, 2008. Going forward, we will continue to reflect the fair value of these financial assets and liabilities at fair value in our balance sheet, with all changes in fair value recorded in earnings.

 

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The following table summarizes the cumulative net fair value adjustments through June 30, 2008 for the specific financial assets and liabilities elected for the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 (dollars in thousands):

 

     Fair Value
Adjustments as of
December 31,
2007
    SFAS No. 159
Fair Value
Adjustments on
January 1, 2008
    SFAS No. 159 Fair
Value Adjustments
during Six-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008
    Cumulative Fair Value
Adjustments as of
June 30, 2008
 

Assets:

        

Investments in securities (1)

   $ (494,765 )   $ (99,991 )   $ (612,605 )   $ (1,207,361 )

Deferred financing costs, net of accumulated amortization

     —         (18,047 )     —         (18,047 )

Liabilities:

        

Trust preferred obligations

     —         52,070       51,319       103,389  

CDO notes payable

     —         1,520,616       946,701       2,467,317  

Derivative liabilities

     (155,080 )     —         (32,509 )     (187,589 )

Other liabilities

     —         6,103       —         6,103  
                                

Fair value adjustments before allocation to minority interest

     (649,845 )     1,460,751       352,906       1,163,812  

Allocation of fair value adjustments to minority interest

     123,881       (373,357 )     (90,555 )     (340,031 )
                                

Cumulative effect on shareholders’ equity

   $ (525,964 )   $ 1,087,394     $ 262,351     $ 823,781  
                                

 

(1) Prior to January 1, 2008, trading securities were classified as available-for-sale and carried at fair value. Accordingly, the election of the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 for trading securities did not change their carrying value and resulted in a reclassification of $310.5 million from accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) to retained earnings (deficit) on January 1, 2008.

Through June 30, 2008, the cumulative effect of the fair value adjustments recorded on each financial asset and liability selected for the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 was a net increase in shareholders’ equity of $823.8 million. This increase in shareholders’ equity may reverse through earnings as an unrealized loss in the future as we continue to record our financial assets and liabilities at fair value. Given the market conditions referred to above and the volatility in interest rates and the credit performance of our underlying collateral, we cannot assure you that there will not be further significant fluctuations in the fair value of our assets and liabilities subject to SFAS No. 159, which could have a material effect on our financial performance.

Investors should read the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007, or the Annual Report, for a detailed discussion of the following items:

 

   

capital markets, liquidity and credit risk,

 

   

interest rate environment,

 

   

prepayment rates on commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and residential mortgages in our portfolio, and

 

   

other market developments.

 

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Table of Contents

Our Investment Portfolio

Please refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information regarding each asset class. The table below summarizes our investment portfolio as of June 30, 2008:

 

     Amortized
Cost(1)
   Estimated
Fair Value(2)
   Percentage
of Total
Portfolio(3)
    Weighted-Average
Coupon(4)
 
     (dollars in thousands)  

Investments in Mortgages and Loans

          

Commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans

   $ 2,130,887    $ 2,127,317    24.2 %   8.3 %

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables(5)

     3,813,542      3,298,513    37.6 %   5.6 %
                          

Total investments in mortgages and loans

     5,944,429      5,425,830    61.8 %   6.7 %

Investments in Securities

          

TruPS and subordinated debentures

     3,416,597      2,566,231    29.2 %   7.1 %

Unsecured REIT note receivables

     370,889      326,867    3.7 %   6.0 %

CMBS receivables

     213,921      129,058    1.5 %   5.8 %

Other securities

     118,210      60,374    0.7 %   7.6 %
                          

Total investments in securities

     4,119,617      3,082,530    35.1 %   6.9 %

Investment in real estate interests

     270,578      270,578    3.1 %   N/A  
                          

Total Portfolio/Weighted Average

   $ 10,334,624    $ 8,778,938    100.0 %   6.8 %
                          

 

(1) Amortized cost reflects the cost incurred by us to acquire or originate the asset, net of origination discount.
(2) The fair value of our investments represents management’s estimate of the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Our management bases this estimate on the underlying interest rates and credit spreads and, to the extent available, quoted market prices. The amortized cost of our investment in real estate interests approximates fair value.
(3) Percentages are based on estimated fair value.
(4) Weighted average coupon is calculated on the unpaid principal amount of the underlying instruments which does not necessarily correspond to amortized cost or estimated fair value.

(5)

Our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables at June 30, 2008 consisted of investments in adjustable rate residential mortgages. These mortgages bear interest rates that are fixed for three, five, seven and ten year periods, respectively, and reset annually thereafter and are referred to as 3/1, 5/1, 7/1 and 10/1 ARMs, respectively. We financed our investment in these assets through short-term repurchase agreements and long-term securitizations.

A summary of each asset class is as follows:

Commercial real estate loans, including mortgage loans and mezzanine loans.

The tables below describe certain characteristics of our commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

     Carrying
Amount
   Estimated
Fair Value
   Range of
Loan Yields
    Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Range of Maturities    Number
of Loans
   % of
Total
Loan
Portfolio
 

Commercial mortgages

   $ 1,426,195    $ 1,416,252    5.2% – 19.0 %   7.7 %   Aug. 2008 –

Aug. 2012

   120    66.9 %

Mezzanine loans

     526,070      529,748    5.1% – 17.0 %   10.5 %   Aug. 2008 –

Aug. 2021

   159    24.7 %

Other loans

     178,622      181,317    4.4% – 9.1 %   6.2 %   Dec. 2008 –

Oct. 2016

   11    8.4 %
                                    

Total

   $ 2,130,887    $ 2,127,317      8.3 %      290    100.0 %
                                    

 

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The charts below describe the property types and the geographic breakdown of our commercial mortgage, mezzanine loans and other loans we own as of June 30, 2008 (based on amortized cost):

LOGO

 

(a) Based on Carrying Amount

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables. We acquire residential mortgage loans with the intention of holding them for investment, rather than for sale. These mortgage loans, at origination, had an average FICO score of 738, an average principal balance of approximately $478,000 and an average loan-to-value ratio of approximately 74.9%. As of June 30, 2008, these residential mortgage loans had a weighted-average interest rate of approximately 5.6%. A FICO score is a credit score developed by Fair Isaac & Co., or Fair Isaac, for rating the credit risk of borrowers. FICO scores range from 300-850 and a higher score indicates a lower credit risk. Fair Isaac’s website states that the median FICO score in the United States is 723.

 

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Table of Contents

Set forth below is certain information with respect to the residential mortgage and mortgage-related receivables owned as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands).

 

      Carrying
Amount
   Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Average
Next
Adjustment
Date
   Average
Contractual
Maturity
   Average
FICO
Score
   Number
of
Loans
   Percentage
of
Portfolio
 

3/1 ARM

   $ 102,639    5.6 %   Aug. 2008    Aug. 2035    731    267    2.7 %

5/1 ARM

     3,127,520    5.6 %   July 2010    Sept. 2035    739    6,507    82.0 %

7/1 ARM

     525,416    5.7 %   Sept. 2011    July 2035    737    1,162    13.8 %

10/1 ARM

     57,967    5.7 %   June 2015    June 2035    749    68    1.5 %
                                   

Total

   $ 3,813,542    5.6 %         738    8,004    100.0 %
                                   

The following charts below describe FICO score, at origination, housing type and geographic breakdown of the residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables we own as of June 30, 2008:

LOGO

 

(a) Based on Carrying Amount

Taberna invested in these residential mortgage loan portfolios primarily in 2005 and mid-2006 to maintain its compliance with the REIT asset and income tests. We acquired these portfolios as part of the Taberna merger in December 2006.

 

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Table of Contents

TruPS and subordinated debentures. We have provided REITs and real estate operating companies the ability to raise subordinated debt capital through TruPS and subordinated debentures. TruPS are long-term instruments, with maturities ranging from 10 to 30 years, which are priced based on short-term variable rates, such as the three-month London Inter-Bank Offered Rate, or LIBOR. TruPS are unsecured and contain minimal financial and operating covenants.

In a typical TruPS transaction, a parent REIT or real estate operating company forms a special purpose trust subsidiary to sell TruPS to an investor. The subsidiary loans the proceeds of its sale received from the investor to its parent company in the form of a subordinated debenture. The terms of the subordinated debenture mirror the terms of the TruPS issued by the trust. The special purpose trust uses the payments of interest and principal it receives on the subordinated debenture to pay interest, dividends and redemption amounts to the holders of the TruPS. TruPS are generally not callable by the issuer within five years of issuance. If the parent company of an issuer of TruPS defaults on payments due on the debenture, the trustee under the indenture governing the debenture has the right to accelerate the entire principal amount of the debenture. TruPS are not secured by any collateral, are ranked senior to the issuer’s parent’s equity in right of payment and generally rank junior to an issuer’s existing senior debt securities in right of payment and in liquidation.

The table below describes our investment in TruPS and subordinated debentures as included in our consolidated financial statements as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

                      Issuer Statistics

Industry Sector

   Estimated
Fair Value
   % of
Total
    Weighted
Average Coupon
    Weighted Average
Ratio of Debt to Total
Capitalization (a)
    Weighted Average
Interest Coverage
Ratio (a)

Commercial Mortgage

   $ 855,558    33.4 %   7.1 %   73.4 %   1.7x

Office

     475,932    18.5 %   6.8 %   71.3 %   2.1x

Specialty Finance

     405,089    15.8 %   7.0 %   87.3 %   1.8x

Homebuilders

     288,553    11.2 %   8.3 %   71.9 %   1.4x

Retail

     199,780    7.8 %   4.7 %   89.7 %   1.8x

Residential Mortgage

     169,458    6.6 %   6.4 %   98.4 %   1.1x

Hospitality

     100,314    3.9 %   7.5 %   80.0 %   2.5x

Storage

     71,547    2.8 %   7.3 %   65.7 %   2.8x
                             

Total

   $ 2,566,231    100.0 %   7.1 %   78.0 %   1.8x
                             

LOGO

 

(a) This is the equity capitalization of our TruPS issuers based on information available to management, as provided by our issuers or through public filings, as of June 30, 2008.
(b) Based on Estimated Fair Value.

 

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Table of Contents

Mortgage-backed securities, including RMBS, CMBS, unsecured REIT notes and other real estate-related debt securities. We have invested, and expect to continue to invest, in RMBS, CMBS, unsecured REIT notes and other real estate-related debt securities.

The table and the chart below describe certain characteristics of our mortgage-backed securities and other real estate-related debt securities as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

Investment Description

   Estimated
Fair Value
   Weighted
Average
Coupon
    Weighted
Average
Years to
Maturity
   Amortized
Cost

Unsecured REIT note receivables

   $ 326,867    6.0 %   8.4    $ 370,889

CMBS receivables

     129,058    5.8 %   34.3      213,921

Taberna Europe I & II CDO investments

     43,027    12.2 %   29.9      51,794

Other securities

     17,347    5.7 %   38.8      66,416
                        

Total

   $ 516,299    6.3 %   22.2    $ 703,020
                        

LOGO

 

(a) S&P ratings as of June 30, 2008.

Investment in real estate interests and preferred equity interests. Our real estate investments and preferred equity interests are comprised of equity interests in entities that directly or indirectly own real estate. We consolidate the financial results of any entities which we control. We present our real estate investments and preferred equity interests on a combined basis as consolidated and unconsolidated interests on our balance sheet.

The table below summarizes the amounts included in our consolidated financial statements for real estate investment interests and preferred equity interests (dollars in thousands):

 

     As of
June 30,
2008
 

Multi-family

   $ 82,518  

Office

     180,902  

Retail and other

     14,289  
        

Subtotal

     277,709  

Plus: Escrows and reserves

     1,017  

Less: Accumulated depreciation

     (8,148 )
        

Investments in real estate interests

   $ 270,578  
        

 

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Table of Contents

Credit Summary

The table below summarizes our non-accrual status investments and loan loss reserves at June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

     Carrying
Value of
Investments
(1)
   Number
of Non-Accrual
Status
Investments
   Carrying
Value of
Non-Accrual
Status
Investments
    Percentage
of Asset
Class(es)
    Loan Loss
Reserves
 

Commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans

   $ 2,130,887    4    $ 42,250     2.0 %   $ 38,500 (2)

Investments in real estate interests

     270,578    —        —       —         —    

Residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables

     3,813,542    350      142,702 (3)   3.7 %     16,973  

Investments in securities and security related receivables (4)

     3,082,530    13      64,869     2.1 %     N/A (5)
                                  

Total

   $ 9,297,537    367    $ 249,821     2.7 %   $ 55,473  
                                  

 

(1) Carrying value represents the value at which the respective asset class is recorded on our balance sheet in accordance with GAAP.
(2) Pertains to 11 loans, 4 of which are on non-accrual status, with a $177.2 million aggregate unpaid principal balance.
(3) Includes loans delinquent over 60 days, in foreclosure, bankrupt or real estate owned as of June 30, 2008.
(4) Investments in securities and security related receivables are recorded at fair value in our consolidated balance sheet in accordance with GAAP. The unpaid principal value of these investments as of June 30, 2008 is $4.3 billion. The unpaid principal balance of the non-accrual investments in this category is $373.1 million, or 8.6% of the total unpaid principal balance.
(5) Loan loss reserves are not applicable for investments in securities and security related receivables, including our investments in European, U.S. TruPS or other securities, as these items are carried at fair value in our consolidated financial statements. The estimated fair value adjustment for our U.S. TruPS portfolio is recorded as a component of GAAP net income. The estimated fair value adjustments for our investments in European securitizations and other securities are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income within shareholders’ equity. A charge to GAAP net income is recorded only if an other than temporary impairment is identified within our European portfolio or other investments. While RAIT believes the estimated fair values of these asset classes are affected by any related credit quality issues, under GAAP, no separate loan loss reserve is established.

 

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Securitization Summary

Through June 30, 2008, our management team has structured and manages 13 CDOs, including CDOs structured at Taberna prior to our merger with it as follows: Taberna Preferred Funding I, Ltd., or Taberna I, Taberna Preferred Funding II, Ltd., or Taberna II, Taberna Preferred Funding III, Ltd., or Taberna III, Taberna Preferred Funding IV, Ltd., or Taberna IV, Taberna Preferred Funding V, Ltd., or Taberna V, Taberna Preferred Funding VI, Ltd., or Taberna VI, Taberna Preferred Funding VII, Ltd., or Taberna VII, Taberna Preferred Funding VIII, Ltd., or Taberna VIII, Taberna Preferred Funding IX, Ltd., or Taberna IX, Taberna Europe CDO I, P.L.C., or Taberna Europe I, Taberna Europe CDO II, P.L.C., or Taberna Europe II, RAIT CRE CDO I, Ltd., or RAIT I and RAIT CRE CDO II, Ltd., or RAIT II, all of which we manage. Set forth below is certain information about each CDO as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in millions):

 

               RAIT’s Retained Interests     

CDO

  

Type Of Collateral

   Total
Collateral
Amount
   Investment
Grade
Debt
   Non
Investment
Grade
Debt
   Equity
Retained
   Total
Investment
   Value of
Retained
Interests
on a
GAAP
Basis (1)
   Value of
Retained
Interests on an
Economic
Book
Value Basis (1)
Taberna I (2)    TruPS, subordinated debt, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes    $ 663.0    $ 3.4    $ —      $ 0.3    $ 3.7    $ 0.3    $ 0.3
Taberna II (2)    TruPS, subordinated debt, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      983.0      —        13.0      44.5      57.5      —        —  
Taberna III (3)    TruPS, subordinated debt, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      745.0      17.0      23.0      30.3      70.3      195.3      70.3
Taberna IV (3)    TruPS, subordinated debt, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      650.0      6.8      24.4      26.0      57.2      192.6      57.2
Taberna V (2)    TruPS, subordinated debt, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      700.0      —        13.0      19.7      32.7      —        —  
Taberna VI (3)    TruPS, subordinated debt, senior secured loans, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      671.3      5.5      3.5      30.0      39.0      204.2      39.0
Taberna VII (3)    TruPS, subordinated debt, first mortgages, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      633.7      17.5      21.0      30.8      69.3      126.6      69.3
Taberna VIII (4)    TruPS, subordinated debt, first mortgages, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      735.0      35.0      33.0      60.0      128.0      407.9      128.0
Taberna IX (5)    TruPS, subordinated debt, first mortgages, CMBS and unsecured REIT notes      743.3      89.0      45.0      52.5      186.5      248.6      185.4

Taberna Europe I

(6) (7)

   Subordinated debt, senior loans, CMBS, other real estate-related assets and financial institution obligations      945.3      —        22.1      17.7      39.8      27.9      27.9

Taberna Europe II

(6) (7) (8)

   Subordinated debt, senior loans, CMBS, other real estate-related assets and financial institution obligations      1,418.0      —        3.2      27.6      30.8      15.1      15.1
RAIT I (9)    Commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans      984.6      —        35.0      165.0      200.0      184.3      200.0
RAIT II (9)    Commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans      810.6      55.5      30.5      110.2      196.2      168.3      196.2
                                                   
TOTAL       $ 10,682.8    $ 229.7    $ 266.7    $ 614.6    $ 1,111.0    $ 1,771.1    $ 988.7
                                                   

 

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(1) These columns represent the basis of our retained interests in these entities under GAAP principles and under our definition of economic book value. The difference between the two columns represents our unrealized gains (losses) recognized in excess of our value of risk that is used to reconcile our Tangible Book Value to Economic Book Value. See “Performance Measures-Economic Book Value” below for a discussion of how we calculate the value of retained interests on an Economic Book Value basis. Economic book value is not intended to represent fair value.
(2) These CDOs are managed and are not consolidated. These CDOs are currently failing several of their respective over-collateralization tests due to collateral defaults and are re-directing approximately $1.5 million of currently available cash flow, in the aggregate on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests, to repay principal on senior debt. Additionally, while we are collecting $1.2 million of senior management fees on these CDOs, we are not collecting $1.2 million of our subordinate management fees.
(3) These CDOs are managed and consolidated CDOs. These CDOs are currently failing several of their respective over-collateralization tests due to collateral defaults and are re-directing approximately $3.4 million of currently available cash flow, in the aggregate on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests, to repay principal on senior debt. However, we are receiving $0.2 million of cash flow, in the aggregate on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests. Additionally, while we are collecting $1.4 million of senior management fees on these CDOs, we are not collecting $1.4 million of our subordinate management fees.
(4) This CDO is managed and consolidated. This CDO cured its failing over-collateralization tests as of June 30, 2008 and will be paying cash flow based upon its respective payment priorities in August 2008. We expect to receive approximately $4.7 million of currently available cash flow, on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests and $0.4 million and $0.4 million of senior and subordinated management fees on a quarterly basis.
(5) This CDO is managed and consolidated. This CDO is performing and paying cash flow based upon its respective payment priorities. We receive approximately $4.1 million of cash flow, on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests and $0.2 million and $0.4 million of senior and subordinated management fees, respectively, on a quarterly basis. This CDO went effective in January 2008.
(6) These CDOs are managed CDOs and are not consolidated. Each of these CDOs is performing and paying cash flow based upon respective payment priorities within its respective indenture. We are receiving $1.6 million of currently available cash flow, in the aggregate on a quarterly basis, associated with our retained interests. Additionally, we are collecting, in the aggregate on a quarterly basis, $1.2 million of senior management fees on these CDOs and $0.9 million of subordinate management fees.
(7) Amounts presented related to these CDOs are converted to U.S. dollars based on U.S. dollar to Euro exchange rates as of June 30, 2008.
(8) This securitization is currently in its “ramp” period, which means that the securitization is still acquiring collateral. This amount represents the total amount of collateral expected to be owned by the CDO when the ramp period closes. S&P has placed the senior debt securities issued by this CDO on negative watch pending rating agency confirmation in September 2008. If rating agency confirmation is not obtained, the CDO will re-direct all available cash flow to repay principal on senior debt until such time as the CDO is confirmed by the rating agencies.
(9) These CDOs are managed and consolidated commercial real estate, or CRE, CDOs. Each of these CDOs is performing and paying cash flow based upon its respective payment priorities. We receive approximately $18.5 million of cash flow, quarterly, associated with our retained interests.

The equity securities that we own in the CDOs shown in the table are subordinate in right of payment and in liquidation to the collateralized debt securities issued by the CDOs. We may also own common shares, or the non-economic residual interest, in certain of the entities above.

The investors that acquire interests in our CDOs include large, international financial institutions, funds, high net worth individuals and private investors. We do not consolidate Taberna I, Taberna II, Taberna V, Taberna Europe I and Taberna Europe II for financial reporting purposes. We consolidate Taberna III, Taberna IV, Taberna VI, Taberna VII, Taberna VIII, Taberna IX, RAIT I and RAIT II for financial reporting purposes.

Through June 30, 2008, we completed six securitizations of residential mortgage loans, which had aggregate unpaid principal balances of approximately $3.8 billion as of June 30, 2008. The following table summarizes the total collateral amount, our retained interests and loan delinquencies greater than 60 days for each of the six securitizations as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in millions):

 

     Total Collateral
Amount
   Our Retained
Interests (1)
   Loan Delinquencies
> 60 days (2)
 

Bear Stearns ARM Trust 2005-7

   $ 404.0    $ 32.9    2.7 %

Bear Stearns ARM Trust 2005-9

     852.7      51.5    1.6 %

Citigroup Mortgage Loan Trust 2005-1

     566.6      43.1    1.0 %

CWABS Trust 2005 HYB9

     785.1      43.9    9.3 %

Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust, Series 2005-A9

     671.7      45.3    2.6 %

Merrill Lynch Mortgage Backed Securities Trust, Series 2007-2

     547.3      23.8    3.4 %
                    

Total

   $ 3,827.4    $ 240.5    3.6 %
                    

 

(1) We have retained all of the “equity” interests in these securitizations. All of the debt issued by these securitizations that was not retained by us is rated “AAA” by various rating agencies.
(2) Based on Total Collateral Amount as of June 30, 2008. Our total loan loss reserve associated with our residential mortgage portfolio was $17.0 million as of June 30, 2008.

Performance Measures

We use adjusted earnings, total fees generated, assets under management, or AUM, and economic book value as tools to measure our financial and operating performance. The following defines these measures and describes their relevance to our financial and operating performance:

 

 

Adjusted Earnings—We measure our performance using adjusted earnings in addition to net income (loss). Adjusted earnings represents net income (loss) available to common shares, computed in accordance with GAAP, before depreciation, amortization of intangible assets, provision for losses, changes in fair value of financial instruments, net of minority interests, unrealized (gains) losses on hedges, interest cost of hedges, net of minority interests, asset impairments, net of minority interests, capital gains (losses), net gain on deconsolidation of VIEs, share-based compensation, write-off of unamortized deferred financing fees, deferred fee revenue and our deferred tax provisions. These items are recorded in accordance with GAAP and are typically non-cash items that do not impact our operating performance or dividend paying ability.

 

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Management views adjusted earnings as a useful and appropriate supplement to GAAP net income (loss) because it helps us evaluate our performance without the effects of certain GAAP adjustments that may not have a direct financial impact on our current operating performance and our dividend paying ability. We use adjusted earnings to evaluate the performance of our investment portfolios, our ability to generate fees, our ability to manage our expenses and our dividend paying ability before the impact of non-cash adjustments recorded in accordance with GAAP. We believe this is a useful performance measure for investors to evaluate these aspects of our business as well. The most significant adjustments we exclude in determining adjusted earnings are amortization of intangible assets, provision for losses, changes in fair value of financial instruments, asset impairments, capital gains (losses) and share-based compensation. Management excludes all such items from its calculation of adjusted earnings because these items are not charges or losses which would impact our current operating performance or dividend paying ability. By excluding these significant items, adjusted earnings reduces an investor’s understanding of our operating performance by excluding: (i) management’s expectation of possible losses from our investment portfolio or non-performing assets that may impact future operating performance or dividend paying ability, (ii) the allocation of non-cash costs of generating fee revenue during the periods in which we are receiving such revenue, and (iii) share based compensation required to retain and incentivize our management team.

Adjusted earnings, as a non-GAAP financial measurement, does not purport to be an alternative to net income (loss) determined in accordance with GAAP, or a measure of operating performance or cash flows from operating activities determined in accordance with GAAP as a measure of liquidity. Instead, adjusted earnings should be reviewed in connection with net income (loss) and cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities in our consolidated financial statements to help analyze management’s expectation of potential future losses from our investment portfolio and other non-cash matters that impact our financial results. Adjusted earnings and other supplemental performance measures are defined in various ways throughout the REIT industry. Investors should consider these differences when comparing our adjusted earnings to these other REITs.

During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, we revised our definition of adjusted earnings to exclude capital gains (losses). Capital gains (losses), while economic gains or losses, do not currently impact operating performance or dividend paying ability. This revision resulted in an increase of $2.2 million to the computation of adjusted earnings for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2007.

The table below reconciles the differences between reported net income available to common shares and adjusted earnings for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007 (dollars in thousands):

 

     For the Three-Month
Periods Ended

June 30
    For the Six-Month
Periods Ended

June 30
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

Net income available to common shares, as reported

   $ 114,450     $ 27,388     $ 244,566     $ 47,736  

Add (deduct):

        

Provision for losses

     25,310       845       35,583       4,563  

Depreciation expense

     1,385       1,103       2,766       1,871  

Amortization of intangible assets

     6,094       14,289       13,165       28,578  

Gains on extinguishment of debt

     (8,662 )     —         (8,662 )     —    

Change in fair value of financial instruments, net of allocation to minority interest of $(8,955) and $90,555 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively

     (106,011 )     —         (262,351 )     —    

Unrealized (gains) losses on interest rate hedges

     66       (429 )     (15 )     (517 )

Interest cost of hedges, net of allocation to minority interest of $3,977 and $6,351 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively

     (11,300 )     —         (17,906 )     —    

Capital losses (1)

     —         2,239       32,059       2,239  

Asset impairments

     9,629       —         20,323       —    

Share-based compensation

     2,453       2,781       4,298       5,737  

Write-off of unamortized deferred financing costs

     —         2,985       —         2,985  

Fee income deferred (recognized)

     (116 )     14,986       189       32,995  

Deferred tax provision (benefit)

     231       (10,577 )     1,223       (18,690 )
                                

Adjusted earnings

   $ 33,529     $ 55,610     $ 65,238     $ 107,497  
                                

 

(1) During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, certain of our warehouse arrangements were terminated. We have recorded the estimated loss of our warehouse deposits as a component of the change in fair value of free-standing derivatives in our consolidated statement of operations.

 

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Total Fees Generated—Total fees generated represents the total fees generated, without consideration for the deferral of fees, as yield adjustments, in accordance with GAAP. This data is useful to management as a gauge of our cash revenue as it drives earnings at our taxable REIT subsidiaries for distribution to us and ultimately to our shareholders. During the following periods, total fees generated reconciles to our GAAP fees and other income as follows (dollars in thousands):

 

     For the Three-Month
Periods Ended
June 30
   For the Six-Month
Periods Ended
June 30
     2008     2007    2008    2007

Fee and other income, as reported

   $ 4,594     $ 1,683    $ 12,003    $ 9,564

Add (deduct):

          

Asset management fees eliminated

     4,172       5,750      8,561      10,238

Deferred structuring fees

     —         5,788      —        11,413

Deferred (recognized) origination fees, net of amortization

     (116 )     9,198      189      21,582
                            

Total Fees Generated

   $ 8,650     $ 22,419    $ 20,753    $ 52,797
                            

 

 

Assets Under Management—AUM represents the total assets that we own or are managing for third parties. While not all AUM generates fee income, it is an important operating measure to gauge our asset growth, volume of originations, size and scale of our operations and our financial performance. AUM includes our total investment portfolio and assets associated with unconsolidated CDOs for which we derive asset management fees. As of June 30, 2008, our total AUM was $14.5 billion, an increase of $0.2 billion, or 1.4%, from $14.3 billion as of December 31, 2007.

 

 

Economic Book Value—We define Economic Book Value as shareholders’ equity, determined in accordance with GAAP, adjusted for the following items: liquidation value of preferred shares, unamortized intangible assets, goodwill, and losses recognized in excess of our investments at risk. Economic book value is a non-GAAP financial measurement, and does not purport to be an alternative to reported shareholders’ equity, determined in accordance with GAAP, as a measure of book value.

Management views economic book value as a useful and appropriate supplement to shareholders’ equity and book value per share. The measure serves as an additional measure of our value because it facilitates evaluation of us without the effects of realized or unrealized gains (losses) on investments in excess of our total investment in that securitization, which is our maximum value at risk. Under GAAP, we record certain of our assets, liabilities and derivatives of our consolidated entities, primarily our consolidated securitizations, at fair value. The net fair value adjustments recognized in our financial statements that reduced our total investment below zero are added back to shareholders’ equity in arriving at economic book value and the net fair value adjustments recognized in our financial statements that are in excess of our total investment are deducted from shareholders’ equity in arriving at economic book value. In performing these computations, we exclude the impact of unrealized fair value adjustments associated with derivatives on economic book value.

Economic book value should be reviewed in connection with shareholders’ equity as set forth in our consolidated balance sheets, to help analyze our value to investors. Economic book value is defined in various ways throughout the REIT industry. Investors should consider these differences when comparing our economic book value to that of other REITs. We do not intend economic book value to represent the fair value of our retained interests in our securitizations or the fair value of our shareholders’ equity available to common shareholders.

The table below reconciles the differences between reported shareholders’ equity, book value, tangible book value and economic book value as of June 30, 2008 and December 31, 2007 (dollars in thousands):

 

     As of June 30, 2008     As of December 31, 2007  
     Amount     Per
Share (2)
    Amount     Per
Share (2)
 

Shareholders’ equity, as reported

   $ 1,877,534     $ 29.42     $ 579,243     $ 9.49  

Add (deduct):

        

Liquidation value of preferred shares (1)

     (165,458 )     (2.59 )     (165,458 )     (2.71 )
                                

Book Value

     1,712,076       26.83       413,785       6.78  

Unamortized intangible assets

     (42,958 )     (0.67 )     (56,123 )     (0.92 )
                                

Tangible Book Value

     1,669,118       26.16       357,662       5.86  

Unrealized (gains) losses recognized in excess of value at risk

     (782,417 )     (12.26 )     284,002       4.66  
                                

Economic Book Value

   $ 886,701     $ 13.90     $ 641,664     $ 10.52  
                                

 

(1) Based on 2,760,000 Series A preferred shares, 2,258,300 Series B preferred shares, and 1,600,000 Series C preferred shares, all of which have a liquidation preference of $25.00 per share.
(2) Based on 63,808,255 and 61,018,231 common shares outstanding as of June 30, 2008 and December 31, 2007, respectively.

 

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REIT Taxable Income

To qualify as a REIT, we are required to make annual distributions to our shareholders in an amount at least equal to 90% of our REIT taxable income, determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid and excluding net capital gains. In addition, to avoid certain U.S. federal excise taxes, we are required to annually make distributions to our shareholders in an amount at least equal to designated percentages of our net taxable income. Because we expect to make distributions based on the foregoing requirements, and not based on our earnings computed in accordance with GAAP, we expect that our distributions may at times be more or less than our reported earnings as computed in accordance with GAAP.

Total taxable income and REIT taxable income are non-GAAP financial measurements, and do not purport to be an alternative to reported net income determined in accordance with GAAP as a measure of operating performance or to cash flows from operating activities determined in accordance with GAAP as a measure of liquidity. Our total taxable income represents the aggregate amount of taxable income generated by us and by our domestic and foreign TRSs. REIT taxable income is calculated under U.S. federal tax laws in a manner that, in certain respects, differs from the calculation of net income pursuant to GAAP. REIT taxable income excludes the undistributed taxable income of our domestic TRSs, which is not included in REIT taxable income until distributed to us. Subject to TRS value limitations, there is no requirement that our domestic TRSs distribute their earnings to us. REIT taxable income, however, generally includes the taxable income of our foreign TRSs because we will generally be required to recognize and report our taxable income on a current basis. Since we are structured as a REIT and the Internal Revenue Code requires that we distribute substantially all of our net taxable income in the form of distributions to our shareholders, we believe that presenting investors with the information management uses to calculate our net taxable income is useful to investors in understanding the amount of the minimum distributions that we must make to our shareholders so as to comply with the rules set forth in the Internal Revenue Code. Because not all companies use identical calculations, this presentation of total taxable income and REIT taxable income may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures prepared and reported by other companies.

The table below reconciles the differences between reported net income available to common shares, total taxable income and estimated REIT taxable income for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007 (dollars in thousands):

 

     For the Three-Month
Periods Ended June 30
    For the Six-Month
Periods Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

Net income available to common shares, as reported

   $ 114,450     $ 27,388     $ 244,566     $ 47,736  

Add (deduct):

        

Provision for losses, net of charge-offs

     19,149       845       29,422       4,563  

Domestic TRS book-to-total taxable income differences:

        

Income tax benefit

     (2,293 )     (4,657 )     (2,434 )     (5,080 )

Fees received and deferred in consolidation

     148       14,840       307       32,849  

Stock compensation and other temporary tax differences

     (2,931 )     1,645       867       2,648  

Capital losses not offsetting capital gains and other temporary tax differences

     —         —         32,059       —    

Asset impairments

     9,629       —         20,323       —    

Change in fair value of financial instruments, net of minority interest of ($8,955) and 90,555 for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively

     (106,011 )     —         (262,351 )     —    

Amortization of intangible assets

     6,094       14,289       13,165       28,578  

CDO investments aggregate book-to-taxable income differences(1)

     (22,971 )     1,410       (34,503 )     (379 )

Accretion of (premiums) discounts

     2,754       1,085       2,271       1,660  

Other book to tax differences

     (701 )     —         (301 )     (123 )
                                

Total taxable income

     17,317       56,845       43,391       112,452  

Less: Taxable income attributable to domestic TRS entities

     3,979       (13,809 )     2,236       (35,627 )

Plus: Dividends paid by domestic TRS entities

     5,500       11,000       12,000       27,250  
                                

Estimated REIT taxable income (prior to deduction for dividends paid)

   $ 26,796     $ 54,036     $ 57,627     $ 104,075  
                                

 

(1) Amounts reflect the aggregate book-to-total taxable income differences and are primarily comprised of (a) unrealized gains on interest rate hedges within CDO entities that Taberna consolidated, (b) amortization of original issue discounts and debt issuance costs and (c) differences in tax year-ends between Taberna and its CDO investments.

 

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Results of Operations

Three-Month Period Ended June 30, 2008 Compared to the Three-Month Period Ended June 30, 2007

Revenue

Investment interest income. Investment interest income decreased $56.6 million, or 24.2%, to $177.3 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $233.9 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This net decrease was primarily attributable to: decreases in interest income of $33.1 million on approximately $1.5 billion of investments resulting from the deconsolidation of our Taberna II and Taberna V CDOs during the latter half of 2007, $12.6 million from the sale of other securities subsequent to June 30, 2007, and $6.3 million from approximately $514.2 million in repayments on our residential mortgage loans; these decreases were offset by an increase in interest income of $12.5 million from the closing and consolidation of Taberna IX in June 2007. The remaining decrease was primarily related to the reduction in short-term LIBOR from June 30, 2007 through June 30, 2008 of approximately 2.6% and $558.1 million in total principal amount of investments on non-accrual status as of June 30, 2008.

Investment interest expense. Investment interest expense decreased $61.0 million, or 33.7%, to $119.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $180.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This net decrease was primarily attributable to: decreases in interest expense of $26.0 million on approximately $1.5 billion of indebtedness resulting from the deconsolidation of our Taberna II and Taberna V CDOs during the latter half of 2007, $13.2 million from reductions in our repurchase agreements and other indebtedness used to finance various investments on a short-term basis, $6.7 million from repayments of our residential mortgage-backed securities used to finance our residential mortgage portfolio and $3.0 million related to the write-off of unamortized deferred financing costs resulting from the termination of a line of credit in April 2007; these decreases were offset by increases in interest expense of $6.9 million from the issuance of CDO notes payable from RAIT II in June 2007 and $6.8 million from the closing and consolidation of Taberna IX in June 2007. The remaining decrease was primarily related to the reduction in short-term LIBOR from June 30, 2007 through June 30, 2008 of approximately 2.6% and the presentation of interest cost of hedges in change in fair value of financial instruments during the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 due to the adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008.

Provision for losses. The provision for losses relates to our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables acquired from Taberna and our commercial mortgage loan portfolio. The provision for losses increased by $24.5 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 to $25.3 million as compared to $0.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. Since December 31, 2007, our delinquencies in our residential mortgage portfolio have increased by $60.6 million, including $48.6 million in real estate-owned, bankruptcy or foreclosure property. Additionally, certain loans in our commercial loan portfolio have continued to deteriorate with our estimate of potential loss increasing. While we believe we have properly reserved for the possibility of losses in our portfolio, we continually monitor our portfolio for evidence of loss and accrue or adjust our loan loss reserve as circumstances or conditions change. As of June 30, 2008, $42.3 million of our commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans and $142.7 million of our residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables were on non-accrual status.

Rental income. Rental income increased $1.3 million, or 47.8%, to $3.9 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $2.6 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month ended June 30, 2007.

Fee and other income. Fee and other income increased $2.9 million to $4.6 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $1.7 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was due to increased origination fees of $2.2 million and increased asset management fees of $0.7 million from our commercial loan and European activities during the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 as compared to the three-month period ended June 30, 2007.

Expenses

Compensation expense. Compensation expense increased $2.6 million, or 45.5%, to $8.4 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $5.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was due to increased compensation costs of $2.3 million associated with lower capitalized costs resulting from a reduction of commercial loan and domestic TruPS production, $0.7 million of increased compensation associated with operations in Europe, and $0.3 million increase in salary, bonus and other compensation costs offset by lower stock based compensation amortization of $0.7 million resulting from phantom unit forfeitures from our executives in December 2007.

Real estate operating expense. Real estate operating expense increased $1.2 million, or 44.1%, to $3.9 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $2.7 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007.

        General and administrative expense. General and administrative expense increased $1.1 million, or 19.4%, to $6.9 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $5.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase is primarily due to $1.6 million of increased legal expenses related to the class action securities lawsuit offset by $0.5 million of decreased other general and administrative costs, including rent expense and travel and entertainment expense.

 

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Depreciation expense. Depreciation expense increased $0.3 million to $1.4 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $1.1 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007 as well as increased depreciation of furniture and fixtures we added since June 30, 2007.

Amortization of intangible assets. Intangible amortization represents the amortization of intangible assets acquired from Taberna on December 11, 2006. Amortization expense decreased $8.2 million, or 57.4%, to $6.1 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $14.3 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease resulted from the full amortization of some of the identified intangibles ($34.8 million had a useful life of one year) and $13.2 million in asset impairments recorded since June 30, 2007.

Other Income (Expenses)

Interest and other income. Interest and other income decreased $4.8 million to $0.1 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $4.9 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is due to reduced average cash and restricted cash balances during the three months ended June 30, 2008 as compared to the three months ended June 30, 2007 as well as reduced interest rates offered by financial institutions in 2008.

Losses on sale of assets. Losses on sale of assets was $0.1 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 compared to $2.8 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. These losses were associated with the sales of investments in securities during the three-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007.

Gains on extinguishment of debt. Gains on extinguishment of debt during the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 are attributable to the repurchase of $21.0 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes from the market for a total purchase price of $11.9 million. As a result, we recorded a gain on extinguishment of debt of $8.6 million, net of $0.5 million deferred financing costs that were written off associated with these convertible senior notes.

Change in fair value of free-standing derivatives. The change in fair value of free-standing derivatives represents the earnings (loss) on (of) our first-dollar risk of loss associated with our warehouse facilities. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, our warehouse agreements terminated with the respective financial institutions. As such, we do not currently expect that we will recover our warehouse deposits. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, we have recorded a loss of $32.1 million on our warehouse deposits. The write-off of these warehouse deposits are our only exposure under these warehouse agreements and we have no further obligations thereunder.

Change in fair value of financial instruments. The change in fair value of financial instruments represents the financial assets, liabilities and derivatives whereby we have elected to record fair value adjustments under SFAS No. 159. Our election to record these assets at fair value was effective on January 1, 2008, the effective date of SFAS No. 159. Our SFAS No. 159 election impacted the majority of our assets within our investments in securities and any related CDO notes payable and derivative instruments used to finance such assets. During the three months ended June 30, 2008, the fair value adjustments we recorded were as follows (dollars in thousands):

 

Description

   For the
Three-Month
Period Ended

June 30, 2008
 

Change in fair value of trading securities and security-related receivables

   $ (171,331 )

Change in fair value of CDO notes payable and trust preferred obligations

     156,460  

Change in fair value of derivatives

     111,927  
        

Change in fair value of financial instruments

   $ 97,056  
        

Equity in income (loss) of equity method investments. Equity in loss of equity method investments increased $1.0 million to $1.0 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 compared to approximately $0.1 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. The increase relates to the accretion on our investment in a property that was accounted for under the equity method.

Asset impairments. For the three-month period ended June 30, 2008, we recorded asset impairments totaling $9.6 million that were associated with certain investments in available-for-sale securities and other assets for which we did not elect SFAS No. 159. In making this determination, management considered the estimated fair value of the investments to our cost bases, the financial condition of the related entity and our intent and ability to hold the investments for a sufficient period of time to recover our investments. For the identified investments, management believes full recovery is not likely and wrote down the investments to their current recovery value, or estimated fair value. Asset impairments were comprised of $2.7 million of other-than-temporary impairment in our available-for-sale securities and $6.9 million of other-than-temporary impairment in other assets.

 

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Income (loss) allocated to minority interest. Minority interest represents the earnings of consolidated entities allocated to third parties, including changes in the fair values of financial instruments discussed above. Minority interest decreased $10.8 million to $4.7 million of loss allocated to minority interest for the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $6.1 million of income allocated to minority interest for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is primarily attributable to the $9.0 million of loss allocated to minority interest associated with the change in fair value of financial instruments in 2008 when compared to zero in 2007.

Provision for income taxes. We maintain several domestic and foreign TRS entities that are subject to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes and foreign taxes. For the three-month period ended June 30, 2008, the provision for income taxes was a benefit of $2.3 million, a decrease of $2.4 million from $4.7 million for the three-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is primarily attributable to operating losses at several of our domestic TRS entities during the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 as compared to operating income at these same entities during the comparable 2007 period.

Discontinued operations. Discontinued operations of $0.1 million during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007 related to one real estate property that was sold in September 2007. As of June 30, 2008, we do not have any discontinued operations.

Six-Month Period Ended June 30, 2008 Compared to the Six-Month Period Ended June 30, 2007

Revenue

Investment interest income. Investment interest income decreased $76.5 million, or 17.4%, to $362.6 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $439.1 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This net decrease was primarily attributable to: decreases in interest income of $66.0 million on approximately $1.5 billion of investments resulting from the deconsolidation of our Taberna II and Taberna V CDOs during the latter half of 2007, $17.8 million from the sale of other securities subsequent to June 30, 2007 and $13.2 million from approximately $514.2 million in repayments on our residential mortgage loans; these decreases were offset by an increase in interest income of $39.1 million from the closing and consolidation of Taberna VIII in March 2007 and Taberna IX in June 2007. The remaining decrease was primarily related to the reduction in short-term LIBOR from June 30, 2007 through June 30, 2008 of approximately 2.6% and $558.1 million in total principal amount of investments on non-accrual status as of June 30, 2008.

Investment interest expense. Investment interest expense decreased $87.1 million, or 25.6%, to $252.8 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $339.9 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This net decrease was primarily attributable to: decreases in interest expense of $51.3 million on approximately $1.5 billion of indebtedness resulting from the deconsolidation of our Taberna II and Taberna V CDOs during the latter half of 2007, $36.9 million from reductions in our repurchase agreements and other indebtedness used to finance various investments on a short-term basis, $14.1 million from repayments of our residential mortgage-backed securities used to finance our residential mortgage portfolio and $3.0 million related to the write-off of unamortized deferred financing costs resulting from the termination of a line of credit in April 2007; these decreases were offset by increases in interest expense of $16.6 million from the issuance of CDO notes payable from RAIT II in June 2007 and $20.4 million from the closing and consolidation of Taberna VIII on March 2007 and Taberna IX in June 2007. The remaining decrease was primarily related to the reduction in short-term LIBOR from June 30, 2007 through June 30, 2008 of approximately 2.6% and the presentation of interest cost of hedges in change in fair value of financial instruments during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 due to the adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008.

Provision for losses. The provision for losses relates to our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables acquired from Taberna and our commercial mortgage loan portfolio. The provision for losses increased by $31.0 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 to $35.6 million as compared to $4.6 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. Since December 31, 2007, our delinquencies in our residential mortgage portfolio have increased by $60.6 million, including $48.6 million in real estate-owned, bankruptcy or foreclosure property. Additionally, certain loans in our commercial loan portfolio have continued to deteriorate with our estimate of potential loss increasing. While we believe we have properly reserved for the possibility of losses in our portfolio, we continually monitor our portfolio for evidence of loss and accrue or adjust our loan loss reserve as circumstances or conditions change. As of June 30, 2008, $42.3 million of our commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans and $142.7 million of our residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables were on non-accrual status.

Rental income. Rental income increased $2.7 million, or 53.4%, to $7.7 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $5.0 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007.

Fee and other income. Fee and other income increased $2.4 million, or 25.5%, to $12.0 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $9.6 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was due to origination fees of $4.4 million and increased asset management fees of $3.6 million from our commercial loan and European origination activities during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 as compared to the six-month period ended June 30, 2007, offset by a structuring fee of $5.6 million that we received in connection with the completion of Taberna Europe I in January 2007.

 

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Expenses

Compensation expense. Compensation expense increased $2.4 million, or 17.2%, to $16.6 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $14.2 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was due to increased compensation costs of $4.0 million associated with lower capitalized costs due to a reduction of commercial loan and domestic TruPS production, and $1.1 million of increased compensation associated with operations in Europe. These increases were offset by lower stock based compensation amortization of $1.5 million resulting from phantom unit forfeitures by our executives in December 2007, $0.7 million from the vesting of certain restricted share awards subsequent to June 30, 2007 and a $0.4 million reduction in salary, bonus and other compensation costs.

Real estate operating expense. Real estate operating expense increased $2.1 million, or 39.4%, to $7.4 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $5.3 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007.

General and administrative expense. General and administrative expense decreased $0.4 million, or 2.9%, to $11.7 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $12.1 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is primarily due a $1.0 million fee paid to Eton Park Capital Management for providing a standby commitment to purchase equity in the Taberna Europe I transaction that we closed in January 2007. No such fees were paid during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008. In addition, there were $1.4 million of increased legal expenses related to the class action securities lawsuit and professional fees and $0.5 million of increased insurance expense offset by $1.3 million of decreased other general and administrative costs, including $0.5 million of travel and entertainment expense, $0.5 million of costs related to deals that will no longer be pursued and $0.3 million of rent expense.

Depreciation expense. Depreciation expense increased $0.9 million to $2.8 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $1.9 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase was primarily attributable to three new properties, with total assets of approximately $82.5 million, acquired or consolidated since or during the three-month period ended June 30, 2007 as well as increased depreciation of furniture and fixtures we added since June 30, 2007.

Amortization of intangible assets. Intangible amortization represents the amortization of intangible assets acquired from Taberna on December 11, 2006. Amortization expense decreased $15.4 million, or 53.9%, to $13.2 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $28.6 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease resulted from the full amortization of some of the identified intangibles ($34.8 million had a useful life of one year) and $13.2 million in asset impairments recorded since June 30, 2007.

Other Income (Expenses)

Interest and other income. Interest and other income decreased $8.2 million to $1.2 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $9.4 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is due to reduced average cash and restricted cash balances during the six months ended June 30, 2008 as compared to the six months ended June 30, 2007 as well as reduced interest rates offered by financial institutions in 2008.

Losses on sale of assets. Losses on sale of assets was $0.1 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 compared to $2.8 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. These losses were associated with the sales of investments in securities during the six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 and 2007.

Gains on extinguishment of debt. Gains on extinguishment of debt during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 are attributable to the repurchase of $21.0 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes from the market for a total purchase price of $11.9 million. As a result, we recorded a gain on extinguishment of debt of $8.6 million, net of $0.5 million deferred financing costs that were written off associated with these convertible senior notes.

Change in fair value of free-standing derivatives. The change in fair value of free-standing derivatives represents the earnings (loss) on (of) our first-dollar risk of loss associated with our warehouse facilities. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, our warehouse agreements terminated with the respective financial institutions. As such, we do not currently expect that we will recover our warehouse deposits. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, we have recorded a loss of $32.1 million on our warehouse deposits. The write-off of these warehouse deposits are our only exposure under these warehouse agreements and we have no further obligations thereunder.

 

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Change in fair value of financial instruments. The change in fair value of financial instruments represents the financial assets, liabilities and derivatives whereby we have elected to record fair value adjustments under SFAS No. 159. Our election to record these assets at fair value was effective on January 1, 2008, the effective date of SFAS No. 159. Our SFAS No. 159 election impacted the majority of our assets within our investments in securities and any related CDO notes payable and derivative instruments used to finance such assets. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, the fair value adjustments we recorded were as follows (dollars in thousands):

 

Description

   For the
Six-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008
 

Change in fair value of trading securities and security-related receivables

   $ (612,605 )

Change in fair value of CDO notes payable and trust preferred obligations

     998,020  

Change in fair value of derivatives

     (32,509 )
        

Change in fair value of financial instruments

   $ 352,906  
        

Equity in income (loss) of equity method investments. Equity in loss of equity method investments increased $0.9 million to $0.9 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 compared to less than $0.1 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. The increase relates to the accretion on an investment in a property that was accounted for under the equity method.

Asset impairments. For the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, we recorded asset impairments totaling $20.3 million that were associated with certain investments in loans, available-for-sale securities and other assets for which we did not elect SFAS No. 159. In making this determination, management considered the estimated fair value of the investments to our cost bases, the financial condition of the related entity and our intent and ability to hold the investments for a sufficient period of time to recover our investments. For the identified investments, management believes full recovery is not likely and wrote down the investments to their current recovery value, or estimated fair value. Asset impairments were comprised of $8.5 million of other-than-temporary impairment in our investments in loans, $4.9 million of other-than-temporary impairment in available-for-sale securities and $6.9 million of other-than-temporary impairment in other assets.

Income (loss) allocated to minority interest. Minority interest represents the earnings of consolidated entities allocated to third parties, including changes in the fair values of financial instruments discussed above. Income allocated to minority interest increased $87.4 million to $99.3 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from $11.9 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This increase is primarily attributable to $90.6 million of income allocated to minority interests due to the change in fair value of financial instruments in 2008 when compared to zero in 2007.

Provision for income taxes. We maintain several domestic and foreign TRS entities that are subject to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes and foreign taxes. For the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, the provision for income taxes was a benefit of $2.4 million, a decrease of $2.7 million from $5.1 million for the six-month period ended June 30, 2007. This decrease is primarily attributable to operating losses at several of our domestic TRS entities during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 as compared to operating income at these same entities during the comparable 2007 period.

Discontinued operations. Discontinued operations of $0.2 million during the six-month period ended June 30, 2007 related to one real estate property that was sold in September 2007. As of June 30, 2008, we do not have any discontinued operations.

 

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Liquidity and Capital Resources

Liquidity is a measure of our ability to meet potential cash requirements, including ongoing commitments to repay borrowings, fund and maintain investments, pay distributions and other general business needs. The disruption in the credit markets discussed above has reduced our liquidity and capital resources. As discussed above, due to current market conditions, the cash flow to us from a number of the securitizations we sponsored has been reduced and we do not expect to sponsor new securitizations to provide us with long-term financing for the foreseeable future. We are seeking to expand our use of secured lines of credit and other financing strategies that permit us to originate investments generating attractive returns while preserving our capital, such as participations and joint venturing arrangements. We expect to continue to receive substantial cash flow from our investment portfolio, though as discussed above, a number of our securitizations are currently failing several of their respective over-collateralization tests due to collateral defaults and are re-directing cash flow associated with our retained interests to repay principal on senior debt. We believe our available cash and restricted cash balances, funds available under our secured credit facilities, repurchase agreements and other financing arrangements, and cash flows from operations will be sufficient to fund our liquidity requirements for the next 12 months. Should our liquidity needs exceed our available sources of liquidity, we believe that our CDO and investment securities could be sold directly to raise additional cash. While we expect to expand our business, we may not be able to obtain additional financing when we desire to do so, or may not be able to obtain desired financing on terms and conditions acceptable to us. If we fail to obtain additional financing, the pace of our growth could be reduced.

Our primary cash requirements are as follows:

 

   

to distribute a minimum of 90% of our net taxable income and to make investments in a manner that enables us to maintain our qualification as a REIT;

 

   

to make investments;

 

   

to repay our indebtedness under our repurchase agreements;

 

   

to pay costs associated with future borrowings, including interest, incurred to finance our investment strategies;

 

   

to pay employee salaries and incentive compensation; and

 

   

to pay U.S. federal, state, and local taxes of our TRSs.

We intend to meet these liquidity requirements through the following:

 

   

the use of our cash and cash equivalent balances of $59.2 million as of June 30, 2008;

 

   

cash generated from operating activities, including net investment income from our investment portfolio, fee income received by Taberna Capital and RAIT Partnership through their collateral management agreements and origination fees received by Taberna Securities. The collateral management fees paid by CDO entities, although eliminated for financial reporting purposes with respect to the consolidated CDOs, represent cash inflows to us, and, after the payment of income taxes, the remaining cash may be used for our operating expenses or distributions; and

 

   

proceeds from future borrowings or offerings of our common and preferred shares.

Cash Flows

As of June 30, 2008 and June 30, 2007, we maintained cash and cash equivalents of approximately $59.2 million and $305.6 million, respectively. Our cash and cash equivalents were generated from the following activities (dollars in thousands):

 

     For the Six-Month Periods
Ended June 30
 
     2008     2007  

Cash flow from operating activities

   $ 82,869     $ 101,916  

Cash flow from investing activities

     325,805       (1,965,744 )

Cash flow from financing activities

     (477,478 )     2,070,029  
                

Net change in cash and cash equivalents

     (68,804 )     206,201  

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period

     127,987       99,367  
                

Cash and cash equivalents at end of period

   $ 59,183     $ 305,568  
                

Our principal source of cash flows is from our investing activities. Our decreased cash flow from operating activities is primarily due to the reduced fees generated in 2008 as compared to 2007 as well as the increase in loans on non-accrual in 2008 as compared to 2007.

 

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The cash inflow from our investing activities during 2008 as compared to cash outflow in 2007 reflects reduction in the volume of investments originated or purchased in 2008 as compared to 2007. Our cash inflow from investing activities resulted from $348.5 million principal repayments on loans and investments.

The cash outflow from our financing activities during 2008 as compared to a cash inflow in 2007 is due to a reduction in our capital raised in 2008 as compared to 2007. During the six months ended June 30, 2008, we have aggressively repaid short-term indebtedness of $91.7 million using available cash resources and cash flow generated during the current year.

For the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, the cash flows generated by our investment portfolios was as follows (dollars in thousands):

 

     Assets Under
Management
   Gross Cash
Flow for the
Three-Month
Period Ended
June 30, 2008 (1)
   Gross Cash
Flow for the
Six-Month
Period Ended

June 30, 2008 (1)

Commercial real estate portfolio (2)

   $ 2,080,772    $ 27,760    $ 52,897

Residential mortgage portfolio

     3,829,365      4,958      10,062

European portfolio

     2,086,178      3,606      7,067

U.S. TruPS portfolio (3)

     6,524,318      9,173      21,023

Other investments

     1,800      252      601
                    

Total

   $ 14,522,433    $ 45,749    $ 91,650
                    

 

(1) Cash flows for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008 may not be indicative of cash flows for subsequent quarterly or annual periods. See “Forward-looking Statements” section above for risks and uncertainties that could cause our gross cash flow for subsequent quarterly or annual periods to differ materially from these amounts.
(2) Our commercial real estate portfolio is comprised of $1.6 billion of assets collateralizing RAIT I and RAIT II, $270.6 million of investments in real estate interests and $248.8 million of commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans included on our consolidated balance sheet.
(3) Our U.S. TruPS portfolio is comprised of assets collateralizing Taberna III, Taberna IV, and Taberna VI through Taberna IX, and our interests in Taberna I, Taberna II and Taberna V, and includes TruPS and subordinated debentures, unsecured REIT note receivables, CMBS receivables, other securities, commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans.

We generated approximately $91.7 million of cash flow for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008 from our portfolios and asset management activities before operating expenses. We incurred approximately $14.7 million in corporate interest expense related to our convertible senior notes outstanding and $6.8 million in preferred share dividends during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008. The remaining net cash flow from operations was used to repay indebtedness, pay operating expenses, including cash compensation expense and general and administrative expenses, and to pay distributions to our shareholders.

Our assets under management have historically been financed on a long-term basis through securitizations and our rights to cash flow from these portfolios are dependent on the terms of the debt and equity securities we hold in these securitizations. Several of our securitizations are currently failing several of their respective over-collateralization tests due to collateral defaults and are re-directing cash flow, associated with our retained interests, to repay principal on senior debt. See “Securitization Summary” above.

At June 30, 2008, we had approximately $47.1 million of indebtedness under repurchase agreements with two major investment banks. We have repaid $91.7 million in repurchase agreement indebtedness during the six months ended June 30, 2008 and expect to significantly reduce the amount of borrowings under repurchase agreements during the remainder of 2008. We have maintained adequate liquidity and met all required margin calls.

Our two commercial real estate securitized financing arrangements include a revolving credit option that allows us to repay the AAA rated debt tranches totaling $475.0 million as loan repayments occur, and then draw up to the available committed amounts during the first five years of each facility. We have $23.5 million of unused capacity as of June 30, 2008, subject to future funding commitments and borrowing requirements. We also have $90.0 million of capacity under secured credit facilities with three commercial banks at June 30, 2008 of which $53.5 million was outstanding and $36.5 million was available for future commercial loans.

 

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Capitalization

Debt Financing.

We maintain various forms of short-term and long-term financing arrangements. Generally, these financing agreements are collateralized by assets within CDOs or mortgage securitizations. The following table summarizes our indebtedness as of June 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

Description

   Unpaid
Principal
Balance
   Carrying
Amount
   Interest Rate
Terms
    Current
Weighted-

Average
Interest Rate
    Contractual
Maturity

Repurchase agreements

   $ 47,106    $ 47,106    3.2% to 3.7 %   3.3 %   Aug. 2008 (1)

Secured credit facilities and other indebtedness

     151,523      151,523    4.5% to 8.1 %   6.1 %   Aug. 2008

to 2037

Mortgage-backed securities issued (2)(3)(4)

     3,593,375      3,564,475    4.6% to 5.8 %   5.1 %   2035

Trust preferred obligations (5)

     362,500      259,111    4.2% to 10.1 %   6.5 %   2035

CDO notes payable – amortized cost(2)(6)

     1,431,250      1,431,250    2.8% to 6.5 %   3.2 %   2036 to 2045

CDO notes payable – fair value (2) (5)(7)

     3,646,142      1,100,972    2.7% to 10.0 %   3.8 %   2035 to 2038

Convertible senior notes

     404,000      404,000    6.9 %   6.9 %   2027
                        

Total indebtedness

   $ 9,635,896    $ 6,958,437      4.7 %  
                        

 

(1) We intend to repay or re-negotiate and extend our repurchase agreements as they mature.
(2) Excludes mortgage-backed securities and CDO notes payable purchased by us which are eliminated in consolidation.
(3) Collateralized by $3,829.4 million principal amount of residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.
(4) Rates generally follow the terms of the underlying mortgages, which are fixed for a period of time and variable thereafter.
(5) Relates to liabilities for which we elected to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159. See note 7.
(6) Collateralized by $1,720.1million principal amount of commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.
(7) Collateralized by $4,178.4 million principal amount of investments in securities and security-related receivables and loans, before fair value adjustments. The fair value of these investments as of June 30, 2008 was $3,085.1 million. These obligations were issued by separate legal entities and consequently the assets of the special purpose entities that collateralize these obligations are not available to our creditors.

We are aware that our convertible senior notes, CDO notes payable and other indebtedness are currently trading at substantial discounts to their respective face amounts. In order to reduce future cash interest payments, as well as future principal amounts due at maturity or upon redemption, or to otherwise benefit RAIT, we may, from time to time, purchase such convertible senior notes, CDO notes payable or other indebtedness for cash, in exchange for our equity securities, or for a combination of cash and equity securities, in each case in open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. We will evaluate any such transactions in light of then-existing market conditions, contractual restrictions and other factors, taking into account our current liquidity and prospects for future access to capital. The amounts involved in any such transactions, individually or in the aggregate, may be material.

Repurchase Agreements

As of June 30, 2008, we were party to several repurchase agreements that had $47.1 million in borrowings outstanding. Our repurchase agreements contain standard market terms and generally renew between one and 30 days. As the assets subject to our repurchase agreements prepay or change in value, we are required to ratably reduce our borrowings outstanding under repurchase agreements. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we repaid $20.8 million and $91.7 million, respectively, associated with our repurchase agreements.

Secured Credit Facilities and Other Indebtedness

We have secured credit facilities with three financial institutions with total capacity of $90.0 million. As of June 30, 2008, we have borrowed $53.5 million on these credit facilities leaving $36.5 million of availability. As of June 30, 2008, we have $50.2 million of junior subordinated notes issued by us outstanding and $47.8 million of other indebtedness outstanding relating to loans payable on consolidated real estate interests and other loans.

Trust Preferred Obligations

As of January 1, 2008, we adopted the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 and elected to record trust preferred obligations at fair value. At adoption, we decreased the carrying amount of the trust preferred obligations by $52.1 million to reflect these liabilities at fair value in our financial statements. The change in fair value of the trust preferred obligations was a decrease of $12.9 million and $51.3 million for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively, and was included in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

CDO Notes Payable – Fair Value

As of January 1, 2008, we adopted the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 and elected to record CDO notes payable that are collateralized by trading securities, security-related receivables and loans at fair value. At adoption, we decreased the carrying amount of these CDO notes payable by $1.5 billion to reflect these liabilities at fair value in our financial statements. The change in fair value of these CDO notes payable was a decrease of $143.6 million and $946.7 million for the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, respectively, and was included in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

 

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Convertible Senior Notes

During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we repurchased, from the market, a total of $21.0 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes for a total purchase price of $11.9 million. As a result, we recorded gains on extinguishment of debt of $8.6 million, net of $0.5 million deferred financing costs that were written off associated with these convertible senior notes.

Equity Financing.

Preferred Shares

On January 29, 2008, our board of trustees declared a first quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends were paid on March 31, 2008 to holders of record on March 3, 2008 and totaled $3.4 million.

On April 17, 2008, our board of trustees declared a second quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends were paid on June 30, 2008 to holders of record on June 2, 2008 and totaled $3.4 million.

On July 29, 2008, our board of trustees declared a third quarter 2008 cash dividend of $0.484375 per share on our 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares, $0.5234375 per share on our 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and $0.5546875 per share on our 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares. The dividends totaling $3.4 million will be paid on September 30, 2008 to holders of record on September 2, 2008.

Common Shares

On January 8, 2008, the compensation committee of our board of trustees, or the Compensation Committee, awarded 324,200 phantom units, valued at $2.4 million using our closing stock price of $7.55, to various non-executive employees. The awards generally vest over four year periods.

On January 24, 2008, 14,457 of our phantom unit awards were redeemed for our common shares. These phantom units were fully vested at the time of redemption.

On March 5, 2008, the Compensation Committee awarded 26,712 phantom units, valued at $0.2 million using our closing stock price of $6.55, to trustees. These awards vest immediately.

On March 25, 2008, our board of trustees declared a quarterly distribution of $0.46 per common share totaling $28.1 million that was paid on May 15, 2008 to shareholders of record as of April 4, 2008.

On June 30, 2008, our board of trustees declared a quarterly distribution of $0.46 per common share totaling $29.4 million that will be paid on August 12, 2008 to shareholders of record as of July 16, 2008.

We implemented an amended and restated dividend reinvestment and share purchase plan, or DRSPP, effective as of March 13, 2008, pursuant to which we registered and reserved for issuance 10,000,000 common shares. During the three-month and six-month periods ended June 30, 2008, we issued a total of 2,728,182 common shares pursuant to the DRSPP at a weighted-average price of $8.12 per share and we received $22.2 million of net proceeds.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements and Commitments

We have maintained warehouse arrangements with various investment banks. These warehouse arrangements are free-standing derivatives under SFAS No. 133. As such, our investment, or first-dollar risk of loss, is recorded at fair value each period with the change in fair value recorded in earnings.

As of June 30, 2008, we maintain a deposit of $6.1 million as a first loss deposit on one warehouse facility. We do not expect to recover this deposit and have fully accrued for this loss in other liabilities on the accompanying consolidated balance sheet. During the six-month period ended June 30, 2008, two of our warehouse facilities were terminated. Due to these events, $32.1 million was charged to earnings through the change in fair value of free-standing derivatives during the six-month period ended June 30, 2008. The write-off of these warehouse deposits represents our only exposure under our warehouse agreements and we have no further obligations thereunder.

In addition, the option we provided a warehouse provider for us to provide credit default protection on two reference securities was terminated in May 2008 and we have no further obligation thereunder.

 

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Critical Accounting Estimates and Policies

Our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 contains a discussion of our critical accounting policies. On January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS No. 159 and revised our accounting policies as described below. See Note 2 in our unaudited consolidated financial statements as of June 30, 2008, as set forth herein. Management discusses our critical accounting policies and management’s judgments and estimates with our Audit Committee.

Revenue Recognition for Investment Income. We recognize interest income from investments in debt and other securities, residential mortgages, commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans on a yield to maturity basis. Upon the acquisition of a loan at a discount, we assess the portions of the discount that constitutes accretable yields and non-accretable differences. The accretable yield represents the excess of our expected cash flows from the loan over the amount we paid for the loan. That amount, the accretable yield, is accreted to interest income over the remaining life of the loan. Many of our commercial mortgages and mezzanine loans provide for the accrual of interest at specified rates which differ from current payment terms. Interest income is recognized on such loans at the accrual rate subject to management’s determination that accrued interest and outstanding principal are ultimately collectible. Management evaluates loans for non-accrual status each reporting period. Payments received for loans on non-accrual status are applied to principal until the loan is removed from non-accrual status. Past due interest is recognized on non-accrual loans when they are removed from non-accrual status and are making current interest payments. For investments that we did not elect to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159, origination fees and direct loan origination costs are deferred and amortized to net investment income, using the effective interest method, over the contractual life of the underlying loan security or loan, in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 91, “Accounting for Nonrefundable Fees and Costs Associated with Origination or Acquiring Loans and Initial Direct Costs of Leases”, or SFAS No. 91. For investments that we elected to record at fair value under SFAS No. 159, origination fees and direct loan costs are recorded in income and are not deferred. We recognize interest income from interests in certain securitized financial assets on an estimated effective yield to maturity basis. Management estimates the current yield on the amortized cost of the investment based on estimated cash flows after considering prepayment and credit loss experience.

Investments. We invest in debt securities, residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables, commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other types of real estate-related assets. We account for our investments in securities under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115, “Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities,” as amended and interpreted, or SFAS No. 115, and designate each investment as a trading security, an available-for-sale security, or a held-to-maturity security based on our intent at the time of acquisition. Under SFAS No. 115, trading securities are recorded at their fair value each reporting period with fluctuations in fair value reported as a component of earnings. Available-for-sale securities are recorded at fair value with changes in fair value reported as a component of other comprehensive income (loss). See “Fair Value of Financial Instruments.” Our estimate of fair value is subject to a high degree of variability based upon market conditions and management assumptions. Upon the sale of an available-for-sale security, the realized gain or loss on the sale will be recorded as a component of earnings in the respective period. Held-to-maturity investments are carried at amortized cost at each reporting period.

On January 1, 2008, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standard No. 159, “The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities”, or SFAS No. 159. See “Recent Accounting Pronouncements.” In applying SFAS No. 159, we classified certain of our available for sale securities as trading securities on January 1, 2008. Trading securities are carried at their estimated fair value, with changes in fair value reported in income.

We account for our investments in subordinated debentures owned by trust VIEs that we consolidate as available-for-sale securities. These VIEs have no ability to sell, pledge, transfer or otherwise encumber the trust or the assets of the trust until such subordinated debenture’s maturity. We account for investments in securities where the transfer meets the criteria as a financing under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 140, “Accounting for Transfers and Servicing of Financial Assets and Extinguishments of Liabilities”, or SFAS No. 140, at amortized cost. Our investments in security-related receivables represent securities that were transferred to issuers of CDOs in which the transferors maintained some level of continuing involvement.

We use our judgment to determine whether an investment in securities has sustained an other-than-temporary decline in value. If management determines that an investment in securities has sustained an other-than-temporary decline in its value, the investment is written down to its fair value by a charge to earnings, and we establish a new cost basis for the investment. Our evaluation of an other-than-temporary decline is dependent on the specific facts and circumstances. Factors that we consider in determining whether an other-than-temporary decline in value has occurred include: the estimated fair value of the investment in relation to our cost basis; the financial condition of the related entity; and the intent and ability to retain the investment for a sufficient period of time to allow for recovery of the fair value of the investment.

We account for our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables, commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans at amortized cost. The carrying value of these investments is adjusted for origination discounts/premiums, nonrefundable fees and direct costs for originating loans which are amortized into income on a level yield basis over the terms of the loans. Mortgage-related receivables represent loan receivables secured by residential mortgages, the legal title to which is held by our consolidated securitizations. These residential mortgages were transferred to the consolidated securitizations in transactions accounted for as financings under SFAS No. 140. Mortgage-related receivables maintain all of the economic attributes of the underlying residential mortgages and all benefits or risks of that ownership inure to the trust subsidiary.

 

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We maintain an allowance for losses on our investments in residential mortgages and mortgage-related receivables, commercial mortgages, mezzanine loans and other loans. Our allowance for losses is based on management’s evaluation of known losses and inherent risks, for example, historical and industry loss experience, economic conditions and trends, estimated fair values, the quality of collateral and other relevant factors. Specific allowances for losses on our commercial and mezzanine loans are established for impaired loans based on a comparison of the recorded carrying value of the loan to either the present value of the loan’s expected cash flow, the loan’s estimated market price or the estimated fair value of the underlying collateral. Our allowance for loss on residential mortgage loans is evaluated collectively for impairment as the mortgage loans are homogenous pools of residential mortgages. The allowance is increased by charges to operations and decreased by charge-offs (net of recoveries).

Transfers of Financial Assets. We account for transfers of financial assets under SFAS No. 140 as either sales or financings. Transfers of financial assets that result in sales accounting are those in which (1) the transfer legally isolates the transferred assets from the transferor, (2) the transferee has the right to pledge or exchange the transferred assets and no condition both constrains the transferee’s right to pledge or exchange the assets and provides more than a trivial benefit to the transferor, and (3) the transferor does not maintain effective control over the transferred assets. If the transfer does not meet these criteria, the transfer is accounted for as a financing. Financial assets that are treated as sales are removed from our accounts with any realized gain (loss) reflected in earnings during the period of sale. Financial assets that are treated as financings are maintained on the balance sheet with proceeds received from the legal transfer reflected as securitized borrowings, or security-related receivables.

Derivative Instruments. We may use derivative financial instruments to hedge all or a portion of the interest rate risk associated with our borrowings. Certain of the techniques used to hedge exposure to interest rate fluctuations may also be used to protect against declines in the market value of assets that result from general trends in debt markets. The principal objective of such agreements is to minimize the risks and/or costs associated with our operating and financial structure as well as to hedge specific anticipated transactions.

In accordance with SFAS No. 133, we measure each derivative instrument (including certain derivative instruments embedded in other contracts) at fair value and records such amounts in our consolidated balance sheet as either an asset or liability. For derivatives designated as fair value hedges, derivatives not designated as hedges, or for derivatives for which we elected the fair value option under SFAS No. 159, the changes in fair value of the derivative instrument is recorded in earnings. For derivatives designated as cash flow hedges, the changes in the fair value of the effective portions of the derivative are reported in other comprehensive income. Changes in the ineffective portions of cash flow hedges are recognized in earnings.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments. Effective January 1, 2008, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157, “Fair Value Measurements”, or SFAS No. 157, which requires additional disclosures about our assets and liabilities that we measure at fair value. As defined in SFAS No. 157, fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Where available, fair value is based on observable market prices or parameters or derived from such prices or parameters. Where observable prices or inputs are not available, valuation models are applied. These valuation techniques involve management estimation and judgment, the degree of which is dependent on the price transparency for the instruments or market and the instruments’ complexity for disclosure purposes. Beginning in January 2008, assets and liabilities recorded at fair value in the consolidated balance sheets are categorized based upon the level of judgment associated with the inputs used to measure their value. Hierarchical levels, as defined in SFAS No. 157 and directly related to the amount of subjectivity associated with the inputs to fair valuations of these assets and liabilities are as follows:

 

   

Level 1: Valuations are based on unadjusted, quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the measurement date. The types of assets carried at level 1 fair value generally are equity securities listed in active markets. As such, valuations of these investments do not entail a significant degree of judgment.

 

   

Level 2: Valuations are based on quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets or quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active or for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.

Fair value assets and liabilities that are generally included in this category are unsecured REIT note receivables, commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS, receivables, CDO notes payable and certain financial instruments classified as derivatives where the fair value is based on observable market inputs.

 

   

Level 3: Inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or liability, and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the asset or liability. In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement in its entirety falls has been determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. Our assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment, and considers factors specific to the asset. Generally, assets carried at fair value and included in this category are TruPS and subordinated debentures where observable market inputs do not exist.

 

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The availability of observable inputs can vary depending on the financial asset or liability and is affected by a wide variety of factors, including, for example, the type of investment, whether the investment is new, whether the investment is traded on an active exchange or in the secondary market, and the current market condition. To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are less observable or unobservable in the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgment. Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised by us in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in level 3. In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement in its entirety falls is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.

Fair value is a market-based measure considered from the perspective of a market participant who holds the asset or owes the liability rather than an entity-specific measure. Therefore, even when market assumptions are not readily available, our own assumptions are set to reflect those that management believes market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability at the measurement date. We use prices and inputs that management believes are current as of the measurement date, including during periods of market dislocation. In periods of market dislocation, the observability of prices and inputs may be reduced for many instruments. This condition could cause an instrument to be reclassified from Level 1 to Level 2 or Level 2 to Level 3.

Many financial institutions have bid and ask prices that can be observed in the marketplace. Bid prices reflect the highest price that we and others are willing to pay for an asset. Ask prices represent the lowest price that we and others are willing to accept for an asset. For financial instruments whose inputs are based on bid-ask prices, we do not require that fair value always be a predetermined point in the bid-ask range. Our policy is to allow for mid-market pricing and adjusting to the point within the bid-ask range that results in our best estimate of fair value.

Fair value for certain of our Level 3 financial instruments is derived using internal valuation models. These internal valuation models include discounted cash flow analyses developed by management using current interest rates, estimates of the term of the particular instrument, specific issuer information and other market data for securities without an active market. In accordance with SFAS No. 157, the impact of our own credit spreads is also considered when measuring the fair value of financial assets or liabilities, including derivative contracts. Where appropriate, valuation adjustments are made to account for various factors, including bid-ask spreads, credit quality and market liquidity. These adjustments are applied on a consistent basis and are based on observable inputs where available. Management’s estimate of fair value requires significant management judgment and is subject to a high degree of variability based upon market conditions, the availability of specific issuer information and management’s assumptions.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements. In September 2006, the FASB issued SFAS No. 157, which defines fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The statement also establishes a framework for measuring fair value by creating a three-level fair value hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of information used to determine fair value, and requires new disclosures of assets and liabilities measured at fair value based on their level in the hierarchy. The adoption of SFAS No. 157 did not have a material impact on our approach to fair valuing our assets, derivative instruments and certain liabilities. See further discussion below on the impact of adopting SFAS No. 159.

In February 2007, the FASB issued SFAS No. 159, which provides entities with an irrevocable option to report most financial assets and liabilities at fair value, with subsequent changes in fair value reported in earnings. The election can be applied on an instrument-by-instrument basis. SFAS No. 159 establishes presentation and disclosure requirements designed to facilitate comparisons between entities that choose different measurement attributes for similar types of assets and liabilities, and will become effective for us on January 1, 2008. As of January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS No. 159 and we will begin to record at fair value certain of our investments in securities, CDO notes payable and trust preferred obligations used to finance those investments and any related interest rate derivatives. Subsequent to January 1, 2008, all changes in the fair value of such investments in securities, CDO notes payable, trust preferred obligations and related interest rate derivatives will be recorded in earnings. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008, we recognized an increase to shareholders’ equity of $1.1 billion.

 

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The following table presents information about the eligible instruments for which we elected the fair value option and for which adjustments were recorded as of January 1, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

 

     Carrying
Amount as of
December 31,
2007
    Effect from
adoption of
SFAS No. 159
    Carrying
Amount as of
January 1, 2008
(After adoption of
SFAS No. 159)
 

Assets:

      

Trading securities (1)

   $ 2,721,360     $ —       $ 2,721,360  

Security-related receivables

     1,050,967       (99,991 )     950,976  

Deferred financing costs, net of accumulated amortization

     18,047       (18,047 )     —    

Liabilities:

      

Trust preferred obligations

     (450,625 )     52,070       (398,555 )

CDO notes payable

     (3,695,858 )     1,520,616       (2,175,242 )

Deferred taxes and other liabilities

     (6,103 )     6,103       —    
            

Fair value adjustments before allocation to minority interest

       1,460,751    

Allocation of fair value adjustments to minority interest

     —         (373,357 )     (373,357 )
            

Cumulative effect on shareholders’ equity from adoption of SFAS No. 159 (2)

     $ 1,087,394    
            

 

(1) Prior to January 1, 2008, trading securities were classified as available-for-sale and carried at fair value. Accordingly, the election of the fair value option under SFAS No. 159 for trading securities did not change their carrying value and resulted in a reclassification of $310.5 million from accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) to retained earnings (deficit) on January 1, 2008.
(2) The $1,087.4 million cumulative effect on shareholders’ equity from the adoption of SFAS No. 159 on January 1, 2008 was comprised of a $310.5 million increase to accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) and a $776.9 million increase to retained earnings (deficit).

In December 2007, the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 160, “Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements – an amendment of Accounting Research Bulletin No. 51”, or SFAS No. 160. SFAS No. 160 establishes accounting and reporting standards for ownership interests in subsidiaries held by parties other than the parent, the amount of consolidated net income attributable to the parent and to the noncontrolling interest, changes in a parent’s ownership interest and the valuation of retained noncontrolling equity investments when a subsidiary is deconsolidated. SFAS No. 160 also establishes disclosure requirements that clearly identify and distinguish between the interests of the parent and the interests of the noncontrolling owners. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In February 2008, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. 140-3, “Accounting for Transfers of Financial Assets and Repurchase Financing Transactions”, or FSP No. 140-3. FSP No. 140-3 provides guidance on accounting for a transfer of a financial asset and a repurchase financing. FSP No. 140-3 presumes that an initial transfer of a financial asset and a repurchase financing are considered part of the same arrangement (linked transaction) under SFAS No. 140. However, if certain criteria are met, the initial transfer and repurchase financing shall not be evaluated as a linked transaction and shall be evaluated separately under SFAS No. 140. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2008, the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 161, “Disclosures about Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities – an amendment of SFAS No. 133”, or SFAS No. 161. SFAS No. 161 requires enhanced disclosure related to derivatives and hedging activities and thereby seeks to improve the transparency of financial reporting. Under SFAS No. 161, entities are required to provide enhanced disclosures relating to: (a) how and why an entity uses derivative instruments; (b) how derivative instruments and related hedge items are accounted for under SFAS No. 133 and its related interpretations; and (c) how derivative instruments and related hedged items affect an entity’s financial position, financial performance and cash flows. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

In May 2008, the FASB issued Staff Position No. Accounting Principles Board 14-1, “Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments That May Be Settled in Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement)”, or APB 14-1, which clarifies the accounting for convertible debt instruments that may be settled in cash (including partial cash settlement) upon conversion. APB 14-1 requires issuers to account separately for the liability and equity components of certain convertible debt instruments in a manner that reflects the issuer’s nonconvertible debt (unsecured debt) borrowing rate when interest cost is recognized. The equity component is presented in shareholders’ equity and the accretion of the resulting discount on the debt is recognized as part of interest expense in the consolidated statement of operations. APB 14-1 requires retrospective application to the terms of instruments as they existed for all periods presented. The statement is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. Management is currently evaluating the impact that this statement may have on our consolidated financial statements.

 

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Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

Market risk is the exposure to loss resulting from changes in interest rates, commodity prices and equity prices. In pursuing our business plan, the primary market risks to which we are exposed are interest rate risk and credit risk. Changes in the general level of interest rates prevailing in the financial markets may affect the spread between our yield on invested assets and cost of funds and, in turn, our ability to make distributions or payments to our shareholders. While we have not experienced any significant credit losses, in the event of a significant rising interest rate environment and/or economic downturn, defaults could increase and result in losses to us which adversely affect our operating results and liquidity.

There have been no material changes in Quantitative and Qualitative disclosures during 2008 from the disclosures included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007. Reference is made to Item 7A included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007.

 

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our chief executive officer and our chief financial officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, our management recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and our management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures.

Under the supervision of our chief executive officer and chief financial officer and with the participation of our disclosure committee, we have carried out an evaluation of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based upon that evaluation, our chief executive officer and chief financial officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective at the reasonable assurance level.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the three-month period ended June 30, 2008 that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

 

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Part II. OTHER INFORMATION

 

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

Putative Consolidated Class Action Securities Lawsuit

RAIT, certain of our executive officers and trustees and the lead underwriters involved in our public offering of common shares in January 2007 were named defendants in one or more of nine putative class action securities lawsuits filed in August and September 2007 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. By Order dated November 17, 2007, the court consolidated these cases under the caption In re RAIT Financial Trust Securities Litigation (No. 2:07-cv-03148), and appointed a lead plaintiff and lead counsel. On January 4, 2008, lead plaintiff filed a consolidated class action complaint, or the complaint, on behalf of a putative class of purchasers of our securities between June 8, 2006 and August 3, 2007. The complaint names as defendants RAIT, eleven current and former officers and trustees of RAIT, ten underwriters who participated in certain of our securities offerings in 2007 and our independent accounting firm. The complaint alleges, among other things, that certain defendants violated Sections 11, 12(a)(2) and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933 by making materially false and misleading statements and material omissions in registration statements and prospectuses about our credit underwriting, our exposure to certain issuers through investments in debt securities, and our loan loss reserves and other financial items. The complaint further alleges that certain defendants violated Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, by making materially false and misleading statements and material omissions during the putative class period about our credit underwriting, our exposure to certain issuers through investments in debt securities, and our loan loss reserves and other financial items. The complaint seeks unspecified compensatory damages, the right to rescind the purchases of securities in the public offerings, interest, and plaintiffs’ reasonable costs and expenses, including attorneys’ fees and expert fees. On March 10, 2008, defendants moved to dismiss the complaint on a number of grounds. The Court permitted plaintiffs to file a single brief in opposition to all defense motions to dismiss on May 15, 2008. All defendants filed reply briefs in support of their motions to dismiss on June 5, 2008. Thereafter, RAIT and certain of the officer/trustee defendants sought leave to file a supplemental brief, which the Court permitted as of June 24, 2008. Plaintiffs were permitted a response to the supplemental brief, which was deemed filed as of July 1, 2008. At this time, we do not anticipate further briefing on the motions to dismiss. The parties have requested oral argument on the motions to dismiss, but no argument has been scheduled. An adverse resolution of the litigation could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Shareholders’ Derivative Action

On August 17, 2007, a putative shareholders’ derivative action was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania naming RAIT, as nominal defendant, and certain of our executive officers and trustees as defendants. The complaint in this action alleges that certain of our executive officers and trustees breached their duties to RAIT in connection with the matters that are the subject of the securities litigation described above. The board of trustees has established a special litigation committee to investigate the allegations made in the derivative action complaint and in shareholder demands asserting similar allegations, and to determine what action, if any, RAIT should take concerning them. On October 25, 2007, pursuant to a stipulation of the parties, the court ordered the derivative action stayed pending the completion of the special committee’s investigation, subject to quarterly status reports by the special litigation committee beginning March 31, 2008. The special litigation committee filed its most recent status report with the Court on June 30, 2008. An adverse resolution of these matters could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Routine Litigation

We are involved from time to time in litigation on various matters, including disputes with tenants of owned properties, disputes arising out of agreements to purchase or sell properties and disputes arising out of our loan portfolio. Given the nature of our business activities, these lawsuits are considered routine to the conduct of our business. The result of any particular lawsuit cannot be predicted, because of the very nature of litigation, the litigation process and its adversarial nature, and the jury system. We do not expect that the liabilities, if any, that may ultimately result from such routine legal actions will have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

 

Item 1A. Risk Factors

There have not been any material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed in Item 1A – “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007.

 

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Item 4. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders

At our Annual Meeting of Shareholders held on May 20, 2008, pursuant to the Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement dated April 4, 2008, the voting results were as follows:

 

  (a) Each of the following nominees was elected to the Board of Trustees as follows:

 

TRUSTEE

   VOTES FOR    VOTES WITHHELD    VOTES ABSTAIN    BROKER NON-VOTE

Betsy Z. Cohen

   53,640,407    1,163,210    0    0

Daniel G. Cohen

   53,650,910    1,152,708    0    0

Edward S. Brown

   53,653,330    1,150,288    0    0

Frank A. Farnesi

   53,671,929    1,131,689    0    0

S. Kristin Kim

   53,671,441    1,132,177    0    0

Arthur Makadon

   52,468,604    2,335,014    0    0

Daniel Promislo

   52,456,742    2,346,876    0    0

John F. Quigley, III

   53,665,530    1,138,088    0    0

Murray Stempel, III

   52,476,415    2,327,203    0    0

 

  (b) The proposal to approve the selection of Grant Thornton LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2008 was approved as follows:

 

VOTES FOR

  

VOTES AGAINST

  

VOTES ABSTAIN

  

BROKER NON-VOTE

54,139,964

   414,904    248,751    0

 

  (c) The proposal to approve an amendment and restatement of RAIT’s 2005 Equity Compensation Plan, including renaming it the RAIT Financial Trust 2008 Incentive Award Plan, was approved as follows:

 

VOTES FOR

  

VOTES AGAINST

  

VOTES ABSTAIN

  

BROKER NON-VOTE

32,424,810

   3,337,810    1,028,711    18,012,289

 

Item 6. Exhibits

 

(a) Exhibits

The exhibits filed as part of this quarterly report on Form 10-Q are identified in the exhibit index immediately following the signature page of this Report. Such Exhibit Index is incorporated herein by reference.

 

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SIGNATURES OF REGISTRANT

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

 

 

RAIT FINANCIAL TRUST

(Registrant)

Date: August 6, 2008   By:  

/s/ Daniel G. Cohen

    Daniel G. Cohen, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee
    (On behalf of the registrant and as its Principal Executive Officer)
Date: August 6, 2008   By:  

/s/ Jack E. Salmon

    Jack E. Salmon, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
    (On behalf of the registrant and as its Principal Financial Officer)
Date: August 6, 2008   By:  

/s/ James J. Sebra

    James J. Sebra, Senior Vice President-Finance and Chief Accounting Officer
    (On behalf of the registrant and as its Principal Accounting Officer)

 

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EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit
Number

 

Description of Documents

  3.1

  Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust. (1)

  3.1.1

  Articles of Amendment to Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust. (2)

  3.1.2

  Articles of Amendment to Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust. (3)

  3.1.3

  Certificate of Correction to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust. (4)

  3.1.4

  Articles of Amendment to Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust. (5)

  3.1.5

  Articles Supplementary relating to the 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest (the “Series A Articles Supplementary”). (6)

  3.1.6

  Certificate of Correction to the Series A Articles Supplementary. (6)

  3.1.7

  Articles Supplementary relating to the 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest. (7)

  3.1.8

  Articles Supplementary relating to the 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest. (8)

  3.2

  By-laws. (9)

  4.1

  Form of Certificate for Common Shares of Beneficial Interest. (5)

  4.2

  Form of Certificate for 7.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest. (10)

  4.3

  Form of Certificate for 8.375% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest. (7)

  4.4

  Form of Certificate for 8.875% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest. (8)

  4.5

  Indenture dated as of April 18, 2007 among RAIT Financial Trust, as issuer, or RAIT, RAIT Partnership, L.P. and RAIT Asset Holdings, LLC, as guarantors, and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as trustee. (11)

  4.6

  Registration Rights Agreement dated as of April 18, 2007 between RAIT and Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. (11)

  4.7

  Notation of Guarantee by RAIT Partnership, L.P. and RAIT Asset Holdings, LLC, as guarantors. (11)

10.1

  Employment Agreement dated as of February 5, 2008 by and between RAIT and Ken R. Frappier. (12)

10.2

  RAIT Financial Trust 2008 Incentive Award Plan, as Amended and Restated May 20, 2008 (the “IAP”).(13)

10.3

  IAP Form of 2008 Cash Award Program Agreement (13)

15.1

  Awareness Letter from Independent Accountants.

31.1

  Certification Pursuant to 13a-14 (a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

31.2

  Certification Pursuant to 13a-14 (a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

32.1

  Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350.

32.2

  Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350.

99.1

  Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations

 

(1) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Registration Statement on Form S-11 (Registration No. 333-35077).
(2) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Registration Statement on Form S-11 (Registration No. 333-53067).
(3) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Registration Statement on Form S-2 (Registration No. 333-55518).
(4) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2002 (File No. 1-14760).
(5) Incorporated herein by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on December 15, 2006 (File No. 1-14760).
(6) Incorporated herein by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on March 18, 2004 (File No. 1-14760).
(7) Incorporated herein by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on October 1, 2004 (File No. 1-14760).
(8) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-A as filed with the SEC on June 29, 2007 (File No. 1-14760).
(9) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007 (File No. 1-14760).
(10) Incorporated herein by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on March 22, 2004 (File No. 1-14760).
(11) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on April 18, 2007 (File No. 1-14760).
(12) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on February 11, 2008 (File No. 1-14760).
(13) Incorporated by reference to RAIT’s Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on May 27, 2008 (File No. 1-14760).

 

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