Property, Plant and Equipment and Leasehold Intangibles, Net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Property, Plant and Equipment and Leasehold Intangibles, Net [Abstract]

Property, Plant and Equipment and Leasehold Intangibles, Net

6. Property, Plant and Equipment and Leasehold Intangibles, Net

As of December 31, 2012 and 2011, net property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles, which include assets under capital leases, consisted of the following (dollars in thousands):

	2012			2011
Land	$	296,314		$	275,277
Buildings and improvements		3,391,667			3,083,316
Leasehold improvements		60,186			62,494
Furniture and equipment		541,585			450,179
Resident and leasehold operating intangibles		441,603			527,571
Construction in progress		75,419			39,600
Assets under capital and financing leases		674,492			667,239
		5,481,266			5,105,676
Accumulated depreciation and amortization		(1,601,289	)		(1,411,612	)
Property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles, net	$	3,879,977		$	3,694,064

Long-lived assets with definite useful lives are depreciated or amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives (or, in certain cases, the shorter of their estimated useful lives or the lease term) and are tested for impairment whenever indicators of impairment arise.

During the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, the Company evaluated property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles for impairment. The Company compared the estimated fair value of the assets to their carrying value for properties with impairment indicators and recorded an impairment charge for the excess of carrying value over fair value. For the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, $27.7 million primarily within the Retirement Centers and Assisted Living segments, $16.9 million within the Retirement Centers and Assisted Living segments and $13.1 million within the Retirement Centers and Assisted Living segments, respectively, of non-cash charges were recorded in the Company's operating results. These impairment charges are primarily due to the amount by which the carrying values of the assets exceed the estimated fair value or estimated selling prices.

For the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, the Company recognized depreciation and amortization expense on its property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles of $248.5 million, $247.1 million and $258.0 million, respectively.

Future amortization expense for resident and leasehold operating intangibles is estimated to be as follows (dollars in thousands):

Year Ending December 31,	Future Amortization
2013	$	26,900
2014		22,248
2015		20,613
2016		19,137
2017		12,272
Thereafter		14,083
Total	$	115,253

- Definition

The entire disclosure for long-lived, physical assets that are used in the normal conduct of business to produce goods and services and not intended for resale. Examples include land, buildings, machinery and equipment, and other types of furniture and equipment including, but not limited to, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment and software. This disclosure may include property plant and equipment accounting policies and methodology, a schedule of property, plant and equipment gross, additions, deletions, transfers and other changes, depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, net, accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization expense and useful lives, income statement disclosures, assets held for sale and public utility disclosures.

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