Organization, Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies

Organization and Basis of Presentation

AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (the "Company," which term, unless the context otherwise requires, refers to AvalonBay Communities, Inc. together with its subsidiaries), is a Maryland corporation that has elected to be treated as a real estate investment trust ("REIT") for federal income tax purposes under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the "Code"). The Company focuses on the development, redevelopment, acquisition, ownership and operation of multifamily communities primarily in New England, the New York/New Jersey metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California.

At March 31, 2019, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 272 operating apartment communities containing 79,143 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which nine communities containing 3,396 apartment homes were under redevelopment. In addition, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 19 communities under development that are expected to contain an aggregate of 6,170 apartment homes when completed, as well as a mixed-use project being developed in which the Company is currently pursuing a potential for-sale strategy of individual condominium units. The Company also owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in land or rights to land on which the Company expects to develop an additional 29 communities that, if developed as expected, will contain an estimated 10,050 apartment homes.

The interim unaudited financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") for interim financial information and in conjunction with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements required by GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations. These unaudited financial statements should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes included in the Company's 2018 Annual Report on Form 10-K. The results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2019 are not necessarily indicative of the operating results for the full year. Management believes the disclosures are adequate to ensure the information presented is not misleading. In the opinion of management, all adjustments and eliminations, consisting only of normal, recurring adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the financial statements for the interim periods, have been included.

Capitalized terms used without definition have meanings provided elsewhere in this Form 10-Q.

Earnings per Common Share

Basic earnings per share is computed by dividing net income attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. All outstanding unvested restricted share awards contain rights to non-forfeitable dividends and participate in undistributed earnings with common shareholders and, accordingly, are considered participating securities that are included in the two-class method of computing basic earnings per share ("EPS"). Both the unvested restricted shares and other potentially dilutive common shares, and the related impact to earnings, are considered when calculating earnings per share on a diluted basis. The Company's earnings per common share are determined as follows (dollars in thousands, except per share data):



	For the three months ended
	3/31/2019			3/31/2018
Basic and diluted shares outstanding
Weighted average common shares - basic	138,331,248			137,764,468
Weighted average DownREIT units outstanding	7,500			7,500
Effect of dilutive securities	493,453			381,202
Weighted average common shares - diluted	138,832,201			138,153,170

Calculation of Earnings per Share - basic
Net income attributable to common stockholders	$	170,366		$	141,643
Net income allocated to unvested restricted shares	(501		)	(430		)
Net income attributable to common stockholders, adjusted	$	169,865		$	141,213

Weighted average common shares - basic	138,331,248			137,764,468

Earnings per common share - basic	$	1.23		$	1.03

Calculation of Earnings per Share - diluted
Net income attributable to common stockholders	$	170,366		$	141,643
Add: noncontrolling interests of DownREIT unitholders in consolidated partnerships	11			11
Adjusted net income attributable to common stockholders	$	170,377		$	141,654

Weighted average common shares - diluted	138,832,201			138,153,170

Earnings per common share - diluted	$	1.23		$	1.03

All options to purchase shares of common stock outstanding as of March 31, 2019 are included in the computation of diluted earnings per share. Certain options to purchase shares of common stock in the amount of 6,995 were outstanding as of March 31, 2018, but were not included in the computation of diluted earnings per share because such options were anti-dilutive for the period.

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities

The Company enters into interest rate swap and interest rate cap agreements (collectively, "Hedging Derivatives") for interest rate risk management purposes and in conjunction with certain variable rate secured debt to satisfy lender requirements. The Company does not enter into Hedging Derivative transactions for trading or other speculative purposes. The Company assesses the effectiveness of qualifying cash flow and fair value hedges, both at inception and on an on-going basis. Hedge ineffectiveness is reported as a component of interest expense, net. The fair values of Hedging Derivatives that are in an asset position are recorded in prepaid expenses and other assets. The fair value of Hedging Derivatives that are in a liability position are included in accrued expenses and other liabilities. The Company does not present or disclose the fair value of Hedging Derivatives on a net basis. Fair value changes for derivatives that are not in qualifying hedge relationships are reported as a component of interest expense, net. For the Hedging Derivative positions that the Company has determined qualify as effective cash flow hedges, the Company has recorded the cumulative changes in the fair value of Hedging Derivatives in other comprehensive loss. Amounts recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss will be reclassified into earnings in the periods in which earnings are affected by the hedged cash flow. The effective portion of the change in fair value of the Hedging Derivatives that the Company has determined qualified as effective fair value hedges is reported as an adjustment to the carrying amount of the corresponding debt being hedged. See Note 11, "Fair Value," for further discussion of derivative financial instruments.

Legal and Other Contingencies

The Company is involved in various other claims and/or administrative proceedings that arise in the ordinary course of its business. While no assurances can be given, the Company does not currently believe that any of these other outstanding litigation matters, individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition or results of operations.

Acquisitions of Investments in Real Estate

The Company accounts for acquisitions of investments in real estate in accordance with the authoritative guidance for the initial measurement, which first requires that the Company determine if the real estate investment is the acquisition of an asset or a business combination. Under either model, the Company must identify and determine the fair value of any assets acquired, liabilities assumed and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree. Typical assets acquired and liabilities assumed include land, building, furniture, fixtures and equipment, debt and identified intangible assets and liabilities, consisting of the value of above or below market leases and in-place leases. In making estimates of fair values for purposes of allocating purchase price, the Company utilizes various sources, including its own analysis of recently acquired and existing comparable properties in its portfolio and other market data. Consideration for acquisitions is typically in the form of cash unless otherwise disclosed. For a business combination, the Company records the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on the fair value of each respective item. For an asset acquisition, the allocation of the purchase price is based on the relative fair value of the net assets. The Company expenses all applicable acquisition costs for a business combination and capitalizes all applicable acquisition costs for an asset acquisition. The Company expects that acquisitions of individual operating communities will generally be viewed as asset acquisitions.

Use of Estimates

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

Reclassifications

Certain reclassifications have been made to amounts in prior years' notes to financial statements to conform to current year presentations as a result of changes in held for sale classification, disposition activity and segment classification.

Leases

The Company is party to leases as both a lessor and a lessee, primarily as follows:


•	lessor of residential and retail space within its apartment communities; and


•	lessee under (i) ground leases for land underlying current operating or development communities, (ii) office leases for its corporate headquarters and regional offices and (iii) leases of equipment.

The Company adopted ASU 2016-02, Leases, as of January 1, 2019 using the prospective adoption approach, applying the provisions of the new standard to existing leases as of the date of adoption.

Lessee Considerations

The Company assessed whether a contract is or contains a lease based on whether the contract conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset, including specified portions of larger assets, for a period of time in exchange for consideration. The Company identified leases as contracts in which it has the right to direct the use of the property and obtain all of the economic benefits.

The Company’s leases include both fixed and variable lease payments, which are based on an index or rate such as the consumer price index (CPI) or percentage rents based on total sales. When evaluating what payments to include in the measurement of the lease liability, the Company included lease payments that depend on an index or rate only. Variable lease payments that are not based on an index or rate including changes in CPI, percentage rents based on total sales, fair market value resets and others are not included in the measurement of the lease liability, but will be recognized as variable lease expense in the period in which they are incurred.

For leases that have options to extend the term or terminate the lease early, the Company considered whether these options are reasonably certain to be exercised, taking into account physical improvements, installation or relocation costs, rent during the option periods and the cost of returning the assets to a contractually specified condition. The Company only factored the impact of options into the lease term if the option was considered reasonably certain to be exercised.

The Company determined the discount rate associated with its ground and office leases using the Company’s actual borrowing rates as well as indicative market pricing for longer term rates. The Company determined the discount rates on a lease by lease basis using the incremental borrowing rate and taking into consideration the remaining term of each of the lease agreements.

Lessor Considerations

The Company evaluated leases in which it is the lessor, which are composed of residential and retail leases at its apartment communities. The accounting model for lessors did not significantly change as a result of ASU 2016-02, with the impacts primarily related to the accounting for sales-type and direct financing leases. The Company evaluated its residential and retail leases determining that they continue to be considered to be operating leases. For lease agreements that provide for rent concessions and/or scheduled fixed and determinable rent increases, rental income is recognized on a straight-line basis over the noncancellable term of the lease. The Company’s residential lease term is generally one year. Some of the Company’s retail leases have fixed-price renewal options, and the lessee may be able to exercise its renewal option at an amount less than the fair value of the rent at such time. The Company only includes renewal options in the lease term, if at the commencement of the lease, the option period rent is reasonably certain to be less than the base period rent and therefore exercised by the lessee.

Additionally, for the Company’s residential and retail leases, which are comprised of the lease component and common area maintenance as a non-lease component, the Company determined that (i) the leases are operating leases, (ii) the lease component is the predominant component and (iii) that all components of its operating leases share the same timing and pattern of transfer.

The Company changed its presentation of charges for uncollectible lease revenue associated with its residential and retail leasing activity, reflecting those amounts as a component of rental and other income on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income for the three months ended March 31, 2019. However, in accordance with its prospective adoption of the standard, the Company did not adjust the prior year period presentation of charges for uncollectible lease revenue associated with its residential and retail leasing activity as a component of operating expenses, excluding property taxes, on the on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

Implementation Considerations and Impact

As discussed above, the Company used the prospective adoption approach for the standard. Additionally, in conjunction with the implementation of the standard, the Company elected to apply certain lessee practical expedients allowed under the standard including:


•	not reassessing (i) whether any expired or existing contracts are or contain leases, (ii) the lease classification for any expired or existing leases and (iii) the accounting for initial direct costs for any existing leases;


•	not evaluating short term leases;


•	not assessing whether existing land easements are, or contain leases; and


•	making an accounting policy election by class of underlying asset, to not separate non-lease components from lease components and instead to account for each separate lease and non-lease component as a single lease component.

Also in conjunction with the implementation of the standard, the Company elected to apply the following practical expedients for lessors, making an accounting policy election:


•	by class of underlying asset for retail and residential leases, to not separate non-lease components from lease components and instead to account for each separate lease and non- lease component as a single lease component;


•	to exclude costs paid by lessees directly to third parties on behalf of the Company; and


•	to exclude sales taxes and other similar taxes assessed by a government authority and collected by the Company from the lessee.

Upon adoption, the Company recorded lease liabilities and offsetting right of use lease assets for its ground and office leases of $122,276,000. In addition, the Company made certain other reclassifications in the current year period of lease related amounts on its Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet to conform to the presentation under the new standard. The adoption of the standard did not have a material impact on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income.

Revenue and Gain Recognition

The majority of the Company’s revenue is derived from residential and retail rental income and other lease income, which are accounted for under ASU 2016-02, Leases, discussed above. The Company's revenue streams that are not accounted for under ASU 2016-02 include:

•

Management fees - The Company has investment interests in real estate joint ventures, for which the Company may manage (i) the venture, (ii) the associated operating communities owned by the ventures and/or (iii) the development or redevelopment of those operating communities. For these activities, the Company receives asset management, property management, development and/or redevelopment fee revenue. The performance obligation is the management of the venture, community or other defined task such as the development or redevelopment of the community. While the individual activities that comprise the performance obligation of the management fees can vary day to day, the nature of the overall performance obligation to provide management service is the same and considered by the Company to be a series of services that have the same pattern of transfer to the customer and the same method to measure progress toward satisfaction of the performance obligation. The Company recognizes revenue for fees as earned on a monthly basis.


•	Rental and non-rental related income - The Company recognizes revenue for new rental related income not included as components of a lease, such as reservation and application fees, as well as for non-rental related income, as earned.

•

Gains or losses on sales of real estate - The Company accounts for the sale of real estate assets and any related gain recognition in accordance with the accounting guidance applicable to sales of real estate, which establishes standards for recognition of profit on all real estate sales transactions, other than retail land sales. The Company recognizes the sale, and associated gain or loss from the disposition, provided that the earnings process is complete and the Company does not have significant continuing involvement. Subsequent to the adoption of the new standard, a gain or loss is recognized when the criteria for an asset to be derecognized are met, which include when (i) a contract exists and (ii) the buyer obtained control of the nonfinancial asset that was sold. As a result, the Company may recognize a gain on a real estate disposition transaction that previously did not qualify as a sale or for full profit recognition due to the timing of the transfer of control or certain forms of continuing involvement. In addition, a gain or loss recognized on the sale of a nonfinancial asset to an unconsolidated entity will be recognized at 100%, and not the Company’s proportionate ownership percentage.

The following table provides details of the Company’s revenue streams disaggregated by the Company’s reportable operating segments, further discussed in Note 8, “Segment Reporting,” for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and 2018. Segment information for total revenue has been adjusted to exclude the real estate assets that were sold from January 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019, or otherwise qualify as held for sale as of March 31, 2019, as described in Note 6, "Real Estate Disposition Activities." Additionally, as discussed above, the Company changed its presentation of charges for uncollectible lease revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and future periods, including it as an adjustment to revenue and not as a component of operating expenses, as it is presented for prior periods on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income. In order to provide comparability between periods presented in the Company's segment reporting, the Company has included charges for uncollectible lease revenue for its segment results as a component of revenue for all periods presented. See Note 8, "Segment Reporting," for further discussion (dollars in thousands):



	For the three months ended
	Established Communities		Other Stabilized Communities		Development/ Redevelopment Communities		Non- allocated (1)		Total
For the period ended March 31, 2019
Management, development and other fees	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	1,139	$	1,139
Rental and non-rental related income (2)	1,913		666		158		—		2,737
Total non-lease revenue (3)	1,913		666		158		1,139		3,876

Lease income (4)	458,206		66,114		35,422		—		559,742
Business interruption insurance proceeds	154		18		—		—		172

Total revenue	$	460,273	$	66,798	$	35,580	$	1,139	$	563,790

For the period ended March 31, 2018
Management, development and other fees	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	886	$	886
Rental and non-rental related income (2)	2,527		745		153		—		3,425
Total non-lease revenue (3)	2,527		745		153		886		4,311

Lease income (4)	442,154		49,352		31,293		—		522,799

Total revenue	$	444,681	$	50,097	$	31,446	$	886	$	527,110

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(1)	Revenue represents third-party management, asset management and developer fees and miscellaneous income which are not allocated to a reportable segment.


(2)	Amounts include revenue streams related to leasing activities that are not considered components of a lease, including but not limited to, apartment hold fees and application fees, as well as revenue streams not related to leasing activities, including but not limited to, vendor revenue sharing, building advertising, vending and dry cleaning revenue.


(3)	Represents all revenue accounted for under ASC 2014-09.


(4)	Amounts include all revenue streams derived from residential and retail rental income and other lease income, which are accounted for under ASU 2016-02.

Due to the nature and timing of the Company’s identified revenue streams, there are no material amounts of outstanding or unsatisfied performance obligations as of March 31, 2019.