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Basis of Presentation
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2022
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Basis of Presentation Basis of Presentation
Readers of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (Quarterly Report) should refer to the audited financial statements and notes to consolidated financial statements of CBRE Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation (which may be referred to in these financial statements as “the company,” “we,” “us” and “our”), for the year ended December 31, 2021, which are included in our 2021 Annual Report on Form 10-K (2021 Annual Report), filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and also available on our website (www.cbre.com), since we have omitted from this Quarterly Report certain footnote disclosures which would substantially duplicate those contained in such audited financial statements. You should also refer to Note 2, Significant Accounting Policies, in the notes to consolidated financial statements in our 2021 Annual Report for further discussion of our significant accounting policies and estimates.
Considerations Related to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the war in Ukraine and Monetary Policy
During the first quarter of 2020, the emergence of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) resulted in sharp contraction of economic and commercial real estate activity across much of the world. Commercial real estate markets recovered strongly beginning in 2021 and continuing into the second quarter of 2022. However, the pandemic has likely engendered structural changes to the utilization of many types of commercial real estate, which will have ongoing repercussions for our business. In addition, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ongoing military conflict pose heightened risks for our operations in Europe, exacerbating supply chain disruptions, worsening inflation and raising the specter of energy shortages this winter. As a result of Russia’s invasion, we elected to exit most of our business in Russia, although we continue have a limited number of employees in the country, managing facilities for existing corporate clients under pre-existing global outsourcing contracts. In addition, the second half of 2022 has been marked by significant macroeconomic challenges as central banks around the world have sharply raised interest rates in efforts to rein in inflation, reducing credit availability. Less available and more expensive debt capital has pronounced effects on our capital markets (mortgage origination and property sales) businesses, making property acquisitions and dispositions harder to finance. Similar factors also impact the timing and ultimate proceeds realized for property sales within our development business.
Financial Statement Preparation
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the rules applicable to quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and include all information and footnotes required for interim financial statement presentation, but do not include all disclosures required under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (U.S.), or General Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), for annual financial statements. In our opinion, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments, except as otherwise noted) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires us to make estimates and assumptions about future events, including the ongoing impacts of Covid-19, the war in Ukraine and weakening global macroeconomic conditions, including less available and more expensive debt capital. These estimates and the underlying assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. Such estimates include the value of goodwill, intangibles and other long-lived assets, real estate assets, accounts receivable, contract assets, operating lease assets, investments in unconsolidated subsidiaries and assumptions used in the calculation of income taxes, retirement and other post-employment benefits, among others. These estimates and assumptions are based on our best judgment. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis using historical experience and other factors, including consideration of the current economic environment, and adjust such estimates and assumptions when facts and circumstances dictate. As future events and their effects cannot be determined with precision, actual results could differ significantly from these estimates. Changes in these estimates resulting from continuing changes in the economic environment will be reflected in the financial statements in future periods.