COMMITMENTS

Operating Leases

The Company leases office space used in connection with its operations under various operating leases, which contain escalation clauses. The Company's operating leases relate to its office space in: Charlotte, North Carolina; Burlingame, California; Charleston, South Carolina; New York City, New York; and Northbrook, Illinois.

Future minimum payments as of December 31, 2017 under operating lease agreements having an initial or remaining non-cancelable lease term in excess of one year are as follows (in thousands):



Year ending December 31,	Amount
2018	$	1,754
2019	1,811
2020	1,389
2021	63
2022	59
Total	$	5,076

Rental expense for all operating leases, except those with terms of a month or less that were not renewed, charged to continuing operations was $2.0 million, $1.6 million and $1.2 million, for each of the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively, and a majority of which is included in general and administrative expense in the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income.

Bonds

The Company has funding commitments that could potentially require performance in the event of demands by third parties or contingent events, as follows (in thousands):



	Commitments Due By Period
	Total		Less Than 1 year		1-3 years		3-5 years		More Than 5 years
Surety bonds ^(a)	$	4,393	$	4,368	$	25	$	—	$	—
Litigation bonds ^(b)	140		140		—		—		—
Total	$	4,533	$	4,508	$	25	$	—	$	—

(a) State laws and regulations generally require businesses which engage in mortgage brokering activity to maintain a mortgage broker or similar license. Mortgage brokering activity is generally defined to include, among other things, receiving valuable consideration for offering assistance to a buyer in obtaining a residential mortgage or soliciting financial and mortgage information from the public and providing that information to an originator of residential mortgage loans. All states require that the Company maintain surety bonds for potential claims.

(b) Bonds required for certain legal matters.

Other Commitments

The Company has certain other commitments through 2020, where the commitments for these contracts range from $2.8 million to $4.3 million each year throughout the life of the contract.