Commitments and Contingencies

The Company is not a party to any litigation other than litigation in the ordinary course of business. The Company's management and legal counsel do not expect that the ultimate outcome of any of its currently ongoing legal proceedings, individually or collectively, will have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Contingencies

On October 9, 2012, the Company entered into a limited payment guaranty with regards to a VIE's $18.0 million bank loan for the construction of a hotel franchised under one of the Company's brands in the United States. Under the terms of the limited guaranty, the Company agreed to guarantee 25% of the outstanding principal balance for a maximum exposure of $4.5 million and accrued unpaid interest, as well as any unpaid expenses incurred by the lender. The limited guaranty shall remain in effect until the maximum amount guaranteed by the Company is paid in full. In addition to the limited guaranty, the Company entered into an environmental indemnity agreement, which indemnifies the lending institution from and against any damages relating to or arising out of possible environmental contamination issues with regards to the property.

On September 4, 2015, the Company entered into a limited payment guaranty with regards to a VIE's $13.3 million bank loan for the design, development, and construction of a new hotel franchised under one of the Company's brands in the United States. Under the terms of the limited guaranty, the Company has agreed to guarantee a maximum of $1.8 million of the VIE’s obligations under the loan. The limited guaranty shall remain in effect until the earlier of (i) the VIE’s bank loan is paid in full to the lender; (ii) the maximum amount guaranteed by the Company is paid in full; or (iii) the Company, through its affiliate, ceases to be a member of the VIE.

On June 2, 2016, one of the Company’s VIEs obtained a $61.0 million term loan for purposes of refinancing a $46.2 million construction loan. In connection with the refinancing, the Company entered into three limited guarantees. Under the terms of the limited guarantees, the Company agreed to guarantee a maximum obligation of $3.3 million in the aggregate, in addition to a percentage of any operating expenses and capital expenditures not covered by operating revenues and unpaid expenses incurred. The limited guarantees will remain in effect until the loan is repaid in full or the VIE reaches a specified debt yield for two consecutive quarters under the loan covenants. The maturity date of the VIE's loan is June 2019.

The Company believes the likelihood of having to perform under the aforementioned limited payment guarantees was remote at September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016.

On September 12, 2017, the Company transferred a portion of an outstanding note receivable to a third party for $24.2 million. Under the agreement, the counter party may require the Company to purchase the outstanding interest in the note if the Company declares a default against the borrower and enters into foreclosure proceedings. The Company believes the likelihood of foreclosure on the note is remote as of September 30, 2017.

Commitments

The Company has the following commitments outstanding at September 30, 2017:

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The Company provides financing in the form of forgivable promissory notes or cash incentives to franchisees for property improvements, hotel development efforts and other purposes. At September 30, 2017, the Company had commitments to extend an additional $206.0 million for these purposes provided certain conditions are met by its franchisees, of which $77.7 million is scheduled to be advanced in the next twelve months.


•	The Company committed to make additional capital contributions totaling $17.1 million to existing joint ventures related to the construction of various hotels to be operated under the Company's Cambria hotel & suites brand.

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In November 2015, the Company provided financing to a development company to acquire and redevelop a historic office building into a Cambria hotel & suites hotel. The Company has committed to provide up to an aggregate of $50.1 million, if necessary, for acquisition of the property and property improvements. As of September 30, 2017, the Company advanced $48.9 million. The promissory notes mature on November 30, 2019, and bear interest at variable and fixed rates and are payable monthly.

In the ordinary course of business, the Company enters into numerous agreements that contain standard indemnities whereby the Company indemnifies another party for breaches of representations and warranties. Such indemnifications are granted under various agreements, including those governing (i) purchases or sales of assets or businesses, (ii) leases of real estate, (iii) licensing of trademarks, (iv) access to credit facilities, (v) issuances of debt or equity securities, and (vi) certain operating agreements. The indemnifications issued are for the benefit of the (i) buyers in sale agreements and sellers in purchase agreements, (ii) landlords in lease contracts, (iii) franchisees in licensing agreements, (iv) financial institutions in credit facility arrangements, (v) underwriters in debt or equity security issuances and (vi) parties under certain operating agreements. In addition, these parties are also generally indemnified against any third party claim resulting from the transaction that is contemplated in the underlying agreement. While some of these indemnities extend only for the duration of the underlying agreement, many survive the expiration of the term of the agreement or extend into perpetuity (unless subject to a legal statute of limitations). There are no specific limitations on the maximum potential amount of future payments that the Company could be required to make under these indemnities, nor is the Company able to develop an estimate of the maximum potential amount of future payments to be made under these indemnifications as the triggering events are not subject to predictability. With respect to certain of the aforementioned indemnities, such as indemnifications of landlords against third party claims for the use of real estate property leased by the Company, the Company maintains insurance coverage that mitigates potential liability.