Basis of Presentation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2013

Basis of Presentation

Note 2. Basis of Presentation

The consolidated financial statements presented herein are at September 30, 2013 and December 31, 2012, and for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013 and 2012. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in the United States of America — as prescribed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) — and using the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) instructions to Form 10-Q. Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified in the consolidated financial statements and the related footnotes to conform to the 2013 presentation.

Organization

For tax purposes, Redwood Trust, Inc. is structured as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”). Our consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Redwood, its direct and indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries, and other entities in which we have a controlling financial interest. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. Our consolidated subsidiaries include both qualifying REIT subsidiaries and taxable subsidiaries. References to the REIT include Redwood and its qualifying REIT subsidiaries, excluding taxable subsidiaries.

We sponsor our Sequoia securitization program, which we use for the securitization of residential mortgage loans. References to Sequoia with respect to any time or period generally refer collectively to all the then consolidated Sequoia securitization entities for the periods presented. We have also engaged in securitization transactions in order to obtain financing for certain of our securities and commercial loans. We previously engaged in other securitization transactions through the Acacia program, which was used for the securitization of mortgage-backed securities and other types of financial assets. References to Acacia generally refer collectively to the consolidated Acacia securitization entities for the periods presented.

Financial Information About Industry Segments

FASB ASC 280, Segment Reporting, establishes standards for reporting financial and descriptive information about an enterprise’s reportable segments. We currently evaluate all of our residential and commercial real estate-related investments and management activities as one reportable industry segment, and, accordingly, we do not report distinct segment information.

Principles of Consolidation

We apply FASB guidance to determine whether we must consolidate transferred financial assets and variable interest entities (“VIEs”) for financial reporting purposes. We currently consolidate the assets and liabilities of the Sequoia securitization entities where we maintain an ongoing involvement, as well as an entity formed in connection with a resecuritization transaction we engaged in during 2011 (“Residential Resecuritization”), and an entity formed in connection with a commercial securitization we engaged in during the fourth quarter of 2012 (“Commercial Securitization”). Prior to December 31, 2012, we consolidated the assets and liabilities of certain Acacia securitization entities. Each securitization entity is independent of Redwood and of each other and the assets and liabilities are not owned by and are not legal obligations of Redwood, although we are exposed to certain financial risks associated with our role as a sponsor, manager, or depositor of these entities or as a result of our having sold assets directly or indirectly to these entities.

For financial reporting purposes, the underlying loans and securities owned at the consolidated Sequoia entities, the Residential Resecuritization entity, and the Commercial Securitization entity are shown under residential and commercial loans and real estate securities on our consolidated balance sheets. The asset-backed securities (“ABS”) issued to third parties by these entities are shown under ABS issued. In our consolidated statements of income, we record interest income on the loans and securities owned at these entities and interest expense on the ABS issued by these entities.

See Note 4 for further discussion on principles of consolidation.