Commitments and contigencies

12 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2015

Commitments and contingencies [Abstract]

Note 8 - Commitments and contingencies:

Leases:

Commercial tenants:

FREIT leases commercial space having a net book value of approximately $227 million at October 31, 2015 to tenants for periods of up to twenty-five years. Most of the leases contain clauses for reimbursement of real estate taxes, maintenance, insurance and certain other operating expenses of the properties.

Minimum rental income (in thousands of dollars) to be received from non-cancelable operating leases in years subsequent to October 31, 2015 is as follows:

Year Ending October 31,	Amount
2016	$	16,955
2017		14,976
2018		12,411
2019		11,132
2020		9,836
Thereafter		55,431
Total	$	120,741

The above amounts assume that all leases which expire are not renewed and, accordingly, neither minimal rentals nor rentals from replacement tenants are included.

Minimum future rentals do not include contingent rentals, which may be received under certain leases on the basis of percentage of reported tenants' sales volume or increases in Consumer Price Indices. Rental income that is contingent on future events is not included in income until the contingency is resolved. Contingent rentals included in income for each of the three years for the period ended October 31, 2015 were not material.

Residential tenants:

Lease terms for residential tenants are usually one year or less.

Environmental concerns:

The Westwood Plaza Shopping Center property is in a Flood Hazard Zone. FREIT maintains flood insurance in the amount of $500,000 for the subject property, which is the maximum available under the Flood Program for the property. Any reconstruction of that portion of the property situated in the flood hazard zone is subject to regulations promulgated by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ("NJDEP"), which could require extraordinary construction methods.

Prior to its purchase in November 2002 by Wayne PSC, LLC, a 40% owned affiliate of FREIT (“Wayne PSC”), a Phase I and Phase II Environmental Assessment of the Preakness shopping center revealed soil and ground water contamination with Percloroethylene (Dry Cleaning Fluid) caused by the mishandling of this chemical by a former dry cleaner tenant. The seller of the center to Wayne PSC has paid for and completed all required remediation work in accordance with the NJDEP standards, and this matter is now closed. In prior years, FREIT conducted environmental audits for all of its properties except for its undeveloped land and retail properties in Franklin Lakes (Franklin Crossing) and Glen Rock, New Jersey. Except as noted above, the environmental reports secured by FREIT have not revealed any environmental conditions on its properties, which require remediation pursuant to any applicable federal or state law or regulation.

FREIT has determined that several of its properties contain lead based paint (“LBP”). FREIT believes that it complies with all federal, state and local requirements as they pertain to LBP.

FREIT does not believe that the environmental conditions described above will have a material adverse effect upon the capital expenditures, revenues, earnings, financial condition or competitive position of FREIT.

Letters of credit:

In connection with the renovation and expansion at the Rotunda, performance letters of credit totaling approximately $1.2 million were issued to guarantee the completion of off-site improvements.