Property, Plant and Equipment and Leasehold Intangibles, Net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

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, 2014 and 2013, net property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles, which include assets under capital and financing leases, consisted of the following (in thousands):

	2014			2013
Land	$	475,485		$	302,444
Buildings and improvements		5,017,991			3,508,693
Leasehold improvements		56,515			59,948
Furniture and equipment		735,837			623,352
Resident and leasehold operating intangibles		852,746			435,012
Construction in progress		99,408			88,309
Assets under capital and financing leases		3,057,516			699,973
		10,295,498			5,717,731
Accumulated depreciation and amortization		(1,905,993	)		(1,822,256	)
Property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles, net	$	8,389,505		$	3,895,475

During the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, 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. The Company recorded non-cash impairment charges in its operating results of $10.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2014, primarily within the Retirement Centers and Assisted Living segments, $12.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2013, primarily within the CCRCs - Rental and Assisted Living segments and $27.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, primarily within the Retirement Centers and Assisted Living segments. These impairment charges are primarily due to lower than expected operating performance at these properties and reflect the amount by which the carrying values of the assets exceeded their estimated fair value.

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the Company recognized depreciation and amortization expense on its property, plant and equipment and leasehold intangibles of $529.1 million, $264.1 million and $248.5 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
2015	$	264,051
2016		23,121
2017		16,742
2018		9,624
2019		5,819
Thereafter		18,858
Total	$	338,215

In connection with the acquisition of Emeritus, the Company recorded intangible assets for resident-in-place leases and below market operating lease intangibles. The Company is amortizing the resident-in-place leases and below market operating lease intangibles over their estimated weighted average useful lives of one and nine years, respectively.