Fair Value of Financial Instruments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The carrying values of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued expenses are reasonable estimates of their fair value. The aggregate fair value of the notes payable with fixed-rate payment terms was determined using Level 3 data in a discounted cash flow approach, which is based upon management’s estimate of borrowing rates and loan terms currently available to the Company for fixed rate financing, and assuming long term interest rates of approximately 3.90% and 4.25%, would be approximately $951.7 million and $851.3 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively, compared to the principal balance of $890.4 million and $844.3 million at December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. A change in any of the significant inputs may lead to a change in the Company’s fair value measurement of its debt.

Effective June 30, 2011, the Company determined that one of its interest-rate swap arrangements was a highly effective hedge of the cash flows under one of its variable-rate mortgage loans and designated the swap as a cash flow hedge of that mortgage. The swap is carried at fair value with changes in fair value recognized either in income or comprehensive income depending on the effectiveness of the swap. The following chart summarizes the changes in fair value of the Company’s swap for the indicated periods.



(Dollars in thousands)	Year ended December 31,
	2017		2016			2015
Increase (decrease) in fair value:
Recognized in earnings	$	70	$	(6	)	$	(10	)
Recognized in other comprehensive income	812		678			124
Total	$	882	$	672		$	114

The Company carries its interest rate swaps at fair value. The Company has determined the majority of the inputs used to value its derivative fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy with the exception of the impact of counter-party risk, which was determined using Level 3 inputs and are not significant. Derivative instruments are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy because their values are determined using third-party pricing models which contain inputs that are derived from observable market data. Where possible, the values produced by the pricing models are verified by the market prices. Valuation models require a variety of inputs, including contractual terms, market prices, yield curves, credit spreads, measure of volatility, and correlations of such inputs. The swap agreement terminates on July 1, 2020. As of December 31, 2017, the fair value of the interest-rate swap was approximately $1.1 million and is included in “Accounts payable, accrued expenses and other liabilities” in the consolidated balance sheets. The decrease in value from inception of the swap designated as a cash flow hedge is reflected in “Other Comprehensive Income” in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details