Deferred Sales Commissions, Net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

Deferred Sales Commissions, Net

Deferred Sales Commissions, Net

The components of deferred sales commissions, net for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 were as follows (excluding amounts related to fully amortized deferred sales commissions):

	December 31,
	2015			2014
	(in thousands)
Carrying amount of deferred sales commissions	$	970,671		$	918,270
Less: Accumulated amortization	(606,963		)	(557,818		)
Cumulative CDSC received	(264,638		)	(242,162		)
Deferred sales commissions, net	$	99,070		$	118,290

Amortization expense was $49.1 million, $41.5 million and $41.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. Estimated future amortization expense related to the December 31, 2015 net asset balance, assuming no additional CDSC is received in future periods, is as follows (in thousands):

2016	$	41,359
2017	31,647
2018	21,021
2019	4,646
2020	344
2021	53
	$	99,070