Note 7 - Commitments and Contingencies

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

7.    Commitments and Contingencies

From time to time, the Company is engaged in legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. The Company does not expect any of such proceedings to have a material adverse effect on its cash flows, financial condition or results of operations. The Company is currently involved in the following legal proceeding, which it believes will not have a material adverse effect on its operating results, cash flows or financial condition.

Guarantees and Indemnities

Under its articles of incorporation and bylaws, the Company has agreed to indemnify its officers and directors for certain events or occurrences arising as a result of the officer’s or director’s serving in such capacity. The maximum potential amount of future payments the Company could be required to make under these indemnification agreements is unlimited. The Company believes the estimated fair value of its obligations under these indemnification agreements is minimal and has recorded no liabilities for these agreements as of March 31, 2012.

The Company also enters into agreements with other companies in the ordinary course of business, typically lenders, joint venture partners, contractors, and tenants that contain indemnification provisions. Under these provisions the Company typically agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the indemnified party for losses suffered or incurred by the indemnified party as a result of certain kinds of activities or inactions of the Company. These indemnification provisions generally survive termination of the underlying agreement. The maximum potential amount of future payments the Company could be required to make under these indemnification provisions is unlimited. To date, the Company has not incurred material costs to defend lawsuits or settle claims related to these indemnification agreements. As a result, the Company believes the estimated fair value of these agreements is minimal. Accordingly, the Company has recorded no liabilities for these agreements as of March 31, 2012.

Seismic Activity

The Company’s properties are located in an active seismic area of Silicon Valley. Insurance policies currently maintained by the Company do not cover seismic activity, although they do cover losses from fires after an earthquake.

Environmental Issues

The environmental investigations that have been conducted on the Company’s properties have not revealed any environmental liability that the Company believes would have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, results of operations and assets, and the Company is not aware of any such liability. Nonetheless, it is possible that there are material environmental liabilities of which the Company is unaware. In addition, the Company cannot assure that future laws, ordinances, or regulations will not impose any material environmental liability, or that the current environmental condition of the properties has not been, or will not be, affected by tenants and occupants of the properties, by the condition of properties in the vicinity of the properties, or by third parties unrelated to the Company.