Financial Instruments and Derivatives

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Financial Instruments and Derivatives

7.Financial Instruments and Derivatives

Financial Instruments Not Carried at Fair Value

Cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and accrued expenses and other liabilities are carried at amounts that reasonably approximate their fair value due to their short term nature.

Fixed rate notes payable as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, totaled $4.1 billion and had estimated fair values of $4.4 billion and $4.5 billion (excluding prepayment penalties) as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively.  The carrying values of variable rate debt (excluding the effect of interest rate swap agreements) as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, totaled $0.4 billion and had estimated fair values of $0.4 billion (excluding prepayment penalties) as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019.  The fair values of fixed rate debt are determined by using the present value of future cash outflows discounted with the applicable current market rate plus a credit spread. The fair values of variable rate debt are determined using the stated variable rate plus the current market credit spread. The variable rates reset every 30 to 90 days, and management concluded these rates reasonably estimate current market rates.

Financial Instruments Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis

As of March 31, 2020, the Company had one outstanding series of cumulative redeemable preferred stock, which is referred to as the MAA Series I preferred stock (see Note 8).  The Company has recognized a derivative asset related to the redemption feature embedded in the MAA Series I preferred stock. The derivative asset is valued using widely accepted valuation techniques, including a discounted cash flow analysis in which the perpetual value of the preferred shares is compared to the value of the preferred shares assuming the call option is exercised, with the value of the bifurcated call option as the difference between the two values. The analysis reflects the contractual terms of the redeemable preferred shares, which are redeemable at the Company’s option beginning on October 1, 2026 and at the redemption price of $50.00 per share. The Company uses various inputs in the analysis, including trading data available on the preferred shares, coupon yields on preferred stock issuances from REITs with similar credit ratings as MAA and treasury rates to determine the fair value of the bifurcated call option.

The redemption feature embedded in the MAA Series I preferred stock is reported as a derivative asset in “Other assets” in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and is adjusted to its fair value at each reporting date, with a corresponding non-cash adjustment to “Other non-operating expense (income)” in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.  As a result of adjustments of non-cash expense recorded to reflect the change in fair value of the derivative asset during the three months ended March 31, 2020, the fair value of the embedded derivative asset decreased to $8.9 million as of March 31, 2020 as compared to $36.5 million as of December 31, 2019.

Periodically, the Company uses interest rate swaps to add stability to interest expense and to manage, or hedge, its exposure to interest rate movements associated with anticipated future debt transactions and variable rate debt. The fair values of interest rate swaps are determined using the market standard methodology of netting the discounted future fixed cash receipts (or payments) and the discounted expected variable cash payments (or receipts). The variable cash payments (or receipts) are based on an expectation of future interest rates (forward curves) derived from observable market interest rate curves.

Management incorporates credit valuation adjustments to appropriately reflect both its nonperformance risk and the respective counterparty’s nonperformance risk in the fair value measurements. In adjusting the fair value of the derivative contracts for the effect of nonperformance risk, the Company considers the impact of netting and any applicable credit enhancements, such as collateral postings, thresholds, mutual puts and guarantees. Based on guidance issued by the FASB, the Company made an accounting policy election to measure the credit risk of its derivative financial instruments that are subject to master netting agreements on a net basis by counterparty portfolio.

As of March 31, 2020, the Company did not have any outstanding interest rate derivatives designated as cash flow hedges of interest rate risk. The fair value of interest rate derivative contracts designated as hedging instruments recorded in “Other assets” in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2019 was $0.1 million.  The Company’s interest rate derivative contracts designated as hedging instruments and their related gains and losses are reported in “Net change in operating accounts and other operating activities” in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

The Company has determined the majority of the inputs used to value its outstanding debt and its embedded derivative fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy, and as a result, the fair value valuation of its debt and embedded derivative held as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 were classified as Level 2 in the fair value hierarchy.

Cash Flow Hedges of Interest Rate Risk

The changes in the fair value of derivatives designated and that qualify as cash flow hedges is recorded in “Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income” and is subsequently reclassified into earnings in the period that the hedged forecasted transaction affects earnings. As long as a hedging instrument is designated and the results of the effectiveness testing support that the instrument

qualifies for hedge accounting treatment, there is no periodic measurement or recognition of ineffectiveness. Rather, the full impact of hedge gains and losses is recognized in the period in which hedged transactions impact earnings, regardless of whether or not economic mismatches exist in the hedging relationship.  Amounts reported in “Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income” related to derivatives designated as qualifying cash flow hedges are reclassified to interest expense as interest payments are made on the Company’s variable rate or fixed rate debt. During the next twelve months, the Company estimates that an additional $1.1 million will be reclassified to earnings as an increase to “Interest expense”, which primarily represents the difference between the fixed interest rate swap payments and the projected variable interest rate swap receipts.

Tabular Disclosure of the Effect of Derivative Instruments on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

The tables below present the effect of the Company’s derivative financial instruments on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019 (dollars in thousands):

Derivatives in Cash Flow Hedging Relationships	Loss Recognized in OCI on Derivative					Location of (Loss) Gain Reclassified from Accumulated	Net (Loss) Gain Reclassified from Accumulated OCL into Interest Expense(1)
Three months ended March 31,	2020		2019			OCL into Income	2020			2019
Interest rate contracts	$	—	$	(2,456	)	Interest expense	$	(253	)	$	745

^{(1) See the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss as these changes are presented net of the allocation to noncontrolling interests.}

Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments	Location of Loss Recognized in	Loss Recognized in Earnings on Derivative
Three months ended March 31,	Income on Derivative	2020			2019
Preferred stock embedded derivative	Other non-operating expense (income)	$	(27,638	)	$	(524	)