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Commitments and Contingencies
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
 
The Company's total minimum lease payment commitments, underground leases, parking leases, and operating leases are disclosed in Note 11, Lease Agreements - Company as Lessee.

To the extent that an environmental matter arises or is identified in the future that has other than a remote risk of having a material impact on the financial statements, the Company will disclose the estimated range of possible outcomes associated with it and, if an outcome is probable, accrue an appropriate liability for that matter. The Company will consider whether any such matter results in an impairment of value on the affected property and, if so, the impairment will be recognized.
 
The Company cannot determine the magnitude of any potential liability to which it may be subject arising out of unknown environmental conditions with respect to the communities currently or formerly owned by the Company. No assurance can be given that: existing environmental assessments conducted with respect to any of these communities have revealed all environmental conditions or potential liabilities associated with such conditions; any prior owner or operator of a property did not create any material environmental condition not known to the Company; or a material unknown environmental condition does not otherwise exist as to any one or more of the communities. The Company has limited insurance coverage for some of the types of environmental conditions and associated liabilities described above.

The Company has entered into transactions that may require the Company to pay the tax liabilities of the partners or members in the Operating Partnership or in the DownREIT entities. These transactions are within the Company’s control. Although the Company intends to hold the contributed assets or defer recognition of gain on their sale pursuant to like-kind exchange rules under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code, if the Company were to sell the contributed assets, the tax liabilities incurred may have a material impact on the Company’s financial position.
There continue to be lawsuits against owners and managers of certain of the Company's apartment communities alleging personal injury and property damage caused by the presence of mold in the residential units and common areas of those communities. Some of these lawsuits have resulted in substantial monetary judgments or settlements in the past. The Company has been sued for mold related matters and has settled some, but not all, of such suits. Insurance carriers have reacted to the increase in mold related liability awards by excluding mold related claims from standard general liability policies and pricing mold endorsements at prohibitively high rates. The Company has, however, purchased pollution liability insurance which includes coverage for some mold claims. The Company has also adopted policies intended to promptly address and resolve reports of mold and to minimize any impact mold might have on tenants of its properties. The Company believes its mold policies and proactive response to address reported mold exposures reduces its risk of loss from mold claims. While no assurances can be given that the Company has identified and responded to all mold occurrences, the Company promptly addresses and responds to all known mold reports. Liabilities resulting from such mold related matters are not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. As of December 31, 2023, potential liabilities for mold and other environmental liabilities are not quantifiable and an estimate of possible loss cannot be made.

The Company carries comprehensive liability, fire, extended coverage and rental loss insurance for each of the communities.  There are, however, certain types of extraordinary losses, such as, for example, losses from terrorism or earthquakes, for which the Company has limited insurance coverage. Substantially all of the communities are located in areas that are subject to earthquake activity. The Company has established a wholly-owned insurance subsidiary, Pacific Western Insurance LLC ("PWI"). Through PWI, the Company is self-insured for earthquake related losses. Additionally, since January 2008, PWI has provided property and casualty insurance coverage for the first $5.0 million of the Company’s property level insurance claims per incident. As of December 31, 2023, PWI has cash and marketable securities of approximately $125.5 million. These assets are consolidated in the Company’s financial statements. Beginning in 2013, the Company has obtained limited third party seismic insurance on selected assets in the Company's co-investments.

In late 2022 and early 2023, a number of purported class actions were filed against RealPage, Inc., a seller of revenue management software, and various lessors of multifamily housing which utilize this software, including the Company. The complaints allege collusion among defendants to artificially increase rents of multifamily residential real estate above competitive levels. The Company intends to vigorously defend against these lawsuits. Given their early stage, the Company is unable to predict the outcome or estimate the amount of loss, if any, that may result from such matters. The Company is also subject to various other legal and/or regulatory proceedings arising in the normal course of its business operations. The Company believes that, with respect to such matters that it is currently a party to, the ultimate disposition of any such matter will not result in a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. To the extent that such a matter arises or is identified in the future that has other than a remote risk of having a material impact on the consolidated financial statements, the Company will disclose the estimated range of possible outcomes associated with it, and, if an outcome is probable, accrue an appropriate liability for that matter. The Company will consider whether any such matter results in an impairment of value on the affected property and, if so, impairment will be recognized.