Fair Value

Financial Instruments Carried at Fair Value

Derivative Financial Instruments

Currently, the Company uses interest rate swap and interest rate cap agreements to manage its interest rate risk. These instruments are carried at fair value in the Company's financial statements. In adjusting the fair value of its derivative contracts for the effect of counterparty nonperformance risk, the Company has considered the impact of its net position with a given counterparty, as well as any applicable credit enhancements, such as collateral postings, thresholds, mutual puts and guarantees. The Company minimizes its credit risk on these transactions by dealing with major, creditworthy financial institutions which have an A or better credit rating by the Standard & Poor's Ratings Group. As part of its on-going control procedures, the Company monitors the credit ratings of counterparties and the exposure of the Company to any single entity, thus reducing credit risk concentration. The Company believes the likelihood of realizing losses from counterparty nonperformance is remote. Although the Company has determined that the majority of the inputs used to value its derivatives fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy, such as interest rate, term to maturity and volatility, the credit valuation adjustments associated with its derivatives use Level 3 inputs, such as estimates of current credit spreads, to evaluate the likelihood of default by itself and its counterparties. As of December 31, 2015, the Company assessed the significance of the impact of the credit valuation adjustments on the overall valuation of its derivative positions and has determined it is not significant. As a result, the Company has determined that its derivative valuations are classified in Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

Hedge ineffectiveness did not have a material impact on earnings of the Company for 2015 or any prior period, and the Company does not anticipate that it will have a material effect in the future.

The following table summarizes the consolidated derivative positions at December 31, 2015 (dollars in thousands):



	Non-designated Hedges Interest Rate Caps			Cash Flow Hedges Interest Rate Caps			Cash Flow Hedges Interest Rate Swaps
Notional balance	$	725,832		$	36,731		$	600,000
Weighted average interest rate (1)	1.8		%	2.7		%	N/A
Weighted average swapped/capped interest rate	5.8		%	5.9		%	2.3		%
Earliest maturity date	February 2016			April 2019			May 2016
Latest maturity date	June 2020			April 2019			November 2017

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(1)	For interest rate caps, represents the weighted average interest rate on the hedged debt.

Excluding derivatives executed to hedge secured debt on communities classified as held for sale, the Company had 10 derivatives designated as a cash flow hedge and 15 derivatives not designated as hedges at December 31, 2015. Fair value changes for derivatives not in qualifying hedge relationships for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, were not material. Excluding the forward interest rate protection agreement discussed further below, fair value changes for derivatives not in qualifying hedge relationships for the year ended December 31, 2013 were not material. To adjust the Hedging Derivatives in qualifying cash flow hedges to their fair value and recognize the impact of hedge accounting, the Company recorded a decrease to accumulated other comprehensive loss of $11,128,000, $6,116,000 and $5,892,000 during the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company reclassified $59,376,000 of deferred losses from accumulated other comprehensive loss with $51,000,000 recognized as loss on interest rate contract as discussed below, and the balance recorded as a component of interest expense, net. The Company anticipates reclassifying approximately $5,493,000 of hedging losses from accumulated other comprehensive loss into earnings within the next 12 months to offset the variability of cash flows of the hedged item during this period. The Company did not have any derivatives designated as fair value hedges as of December 31, 2015 and 2014.

During 2015, the Company entered into $600,000,000 of forward interest rate swap agreements to reduce the impact of variability in interest rates on a portion of the Company's expected debt issuance activity in 2016 and 2017. At maturity of the agreements, the Company expects to cash settle the contracts and either pay or receive cash for the then current fair value. Assuming that the Company issues the debt as expected, the impact from settling these positions will then be recognized over the life of the issued debt as a yield adjustment.

In 2013, the Company was party to a $215,000,000 forward interest rate protection agreement, which was entered into in 2011 to reduce the impact of variability in interest rates on a portion of its expected debt issuance activity in 2013. The Company settled this position at its maturity in May 2013 with a payment to the counterparty of $51,000,000, the fair value at the time of settlement. Based on changes in the Company's capital requirements for 2013, the Company deemed it was probable that it would not issue the anticipated debt for which the interest rate protection agreement was transacted. During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company recognized a loss of $51,000,000 for the forward interest rate protection agreement in loss on interest rate contract on the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income.

Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests

The Company provided redemption options (the "Puts") that allow joint venture partners of the Company to require the Company to purchase their interests in the investment at a guaranteed minimum amount related to three ventures. The Puts are payable in cash. The Company determines the fair value of the Puts based on unobservable inputs considering the assumptions that market participants would make in pricing the obligations, applying a guaranteed rate of return to the joint venture partners' net capital contribution balances as of period end. Given the significance of the unobservable inputs, the valuations are classified in Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy.

The Company issued units of limited partnership interest in DownREITs which provide the DownREIT limited partners the ability to present all or some of their units for redemption for cash as determined by the partnership agreement. Under the DownREIT agreements, for each limited partnership unit, the limited partner is entitled to receive cash in the amount equal to the fair value of the Company's common stock on or about the date of redemption. In lieu of cash redemption, the Company may elect to exchange such units for an equal number of shares of the Company's common stock. The limited partnership units in the DownREITs are valued using the market price of the Company's common stock, a Level 1 price under the fair value hierarchy.

Financial Instruments Not Carried at Fair Value

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalent balances are held with various financial institutions, within principal protected accounts. The Company monitors credit ratings of these financial institutions and the concentration of cash and cash equivalent balances with any one financial institution and believes the likelihood of realizing material losses related to cash and cash equivalent balances is remote. Cash and cash equivalents are carried at their face amounts, which reasonably approximate their fair values and are Level 1 within the fair value hierarchy.

Other Financial Instruments

Rents receivable, accounts and construction payable and accrued expenses and other liabilities are carried at their face amounts, which reasonably approximate their fair values.

The Company values its unsecured notes using quoted market prices, a Level 1 price within the fair value hierarchy. The Company values its notes payable and outstanding amounts under the Credit Facility and Term Loan using a discounted cash flow analysis on the expected cash flows of each instrument. This analysis reflects the contractual terms of the instrument, including the period to maturity, and uses observable market-based inputs, including interest rate curves. The process also considers credit valuation adjustments to appropriately reflect the Company’s nonperformance risk. The Company has concluded that the value of its notes payable and amounts outstanding under its Credit Facility and Term Loan are Level 2 prices as the majority of the inputs used to value its positions fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

Financial Instruments Measured/Disclosed at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis

The following table summarizes the classification between the three levels of the fair value hierarchy of the Company's financial instruments measured/disclosed at fair value on a recurring basis (dollars in thousands):



Description	Total Fair Value			Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)			Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)			Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	12/31/2015
Non Designated Hedges
Interest Rate Caps	$	26		$	—		$	26		$	—
Cash Flow Hedges
Interest Rate Caps	5			—			5			—
Interest Rate Swaps	5,422			—			5,422			—
Put(s)	(8,181		)	—			—			(8,181		)
DownREIT units	(1,381		)	(1,381		)	—			—
Indebtedness
Unsecured notes	(3,668,417		)	(3,668,417		)	—			—
Mortgage notes payable and unsecured term loan	(2,700,341		)	—			(2,700,341		)	—
Total	$	(6,372,867	)	$	(3,669,798	)	$	(2,694,888	)	$	(8,181	)

	12/31/2014
Non Designated Hedges
Interest Rate Caps	$	50		$	—		$	50		$	—
Cash Flow Hedges
Interest Rate Caps	58			—			58			—
Put(s)	(11,104		)	—			—			(11,104		)
DownREIT units	(1,226		)	(1,226		)	—			—
Indebtedness
Unsecured notes	(2,874,147		)	(2,874,147		)	—			—
Mortgage notes payable and unsecured term loan	(3,683,875		)	—			(3,683,875		)	—
Total	$	(6,570,244	)	$	(2,875,373	)	$	(3,683,767	)	$	(11,104	)