NOTE 3: REAL ESTATE SALES AND ASSETS HELD FOR SALE

Real Estate Assets Held for Sale—Real estate assets held for sale in the Company’s unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets consisted of the following (in thousands):



	March 31, 2017		December 31, 2016
Real estate	$	16,356	$	17,176

As of March 31, 2017, the Company had five real estate properties held for sale. The Company recorded charges of $1 million and $8 million in the three months ended March 31, 2017 and March 31, 2016, respectively, to write down certain properties to their estimated fair value, less the expected selling costs, which were determined based on certain assumptions and judgments that are Level 3 within the fair value hierarchy. These charges are included in selling, general and administrative expenses (“SG&A”) in the Company’s unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Sales of Real Estate—In the three months ended March 31, 2017, the Company sold two properties for net pretax proceeds totaling $44 million, as further described below. The Company defines net proceeds as pretax cash proceeds on the sale of properties, net of associated selling costs.

On January 26, 2017, the Company sold its Denver, CO property for net proceeds of $23 million, which approximated the carrying value, and entered into a lease for the property. On January 31, 2017, the Company sold one of its Chicago, IL properties for net proceeds of $22 million and entered into a lease with a term of 10 years, subject to renewal, retaining the use of more than a minor portion of the property. The Company recorded a deferred pretax gain of $13 million on the sale, which will be amortized over the life of the lease in accordance with sale-leaseback accounting guidance.