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Nature Of Business | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2012
Nature Of Business [Abstract] |
Nature Of Business | NATURE OF BUSINESS Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (“WRIT”), a Maryland real estate investment trust, is a self-administered, self-managed equity real estate investment trust, successor to a trust organized in 1960. Our business consists of the ownership and operation of income-producing real estate properties in the greater Washington Metro region. We own a diversified portfolio of office buildings, medical office buildings, multifamily buildings and retail centers. Federal Income Taxes We believe that we qualify as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) under Sections 856-860 of the Internal Revenue Code and intend to continue to qualify as such. To maintain our status as a REIT, we are required to distribute 90% of our ordinary taxable income to our shareholders. When selling properties, we have the option of (a) reinvesting the sale proceeds of properties sold, allowing for a deferral of income taxes on the sale, (b) paying out capital gains to the shareholders with no tax to WRIT or (c) treating the capital gains as having been distributed to the shareholders, paying the tax on the gain deemed distributed and allocating the tax paid as a credit to the shareholders. During the three years ended December 31, 2012, we sold the following properties (in thousands):
Disposition Date | Property | Type | Gain on Sale
August 31, 2012 | 1700 Research Boulevard | Office | $ | 3,724 |
December 20, 2012 | Plumtree Medical Center | Medical Office | 1,400 |
|  | Total 2012 | $ | 5,124 |
April 5, 2011 | Dulles Station, Phase I | Office | $ | — |
Various (1) | Industrial Portfolio (1) | Office/Industrial | 97,491 |
|  | Total 2011 | $ | 97,491 |
June 18, 2010 | Parklawn Portfolio(2) | Office/Industrial | $ | 7,942 |
December 21, 2010 | The Ridges | Office | 4,441 |
December 22, 2010 | Ammendale I&II/Amvax | Industrial | 9,216 |
|  | Total 2010 | $ | 21,599 |
(1) | The Industrial Portfolio consists of every property in our industrial segment and two office properties (the Crescent and Albemarle Point), and we closed on the sale on three separate dates. On September 2, 2011, we closed on the sale of the two office properties (the Crescent and Albemarle Point) and 8880 Gorman Road, Dulles South IV, Fullerton Business Center, Hampton Overlook, Alban Business Center, Pickett Industrial Park, Northern Virginia Industrial Park I, 270 Technology Park, Fullerton Industrial Center, Sully Square, 9950 Business Parkway, Hampton South and 8900 Telegraph Road. On October 3, 2011, we closed the sale of Northern Virginia Industrial Park II. On November 1, 2011, we closed on the sale of 6100 Columbia Park Road and Dulles Business Park I and II.
(2) | The Parklawn Portfolio consists of three office properties (Parklawn Plaza, Lexington Building and Saratoga Building) and one industrial property (Charleston Business Center).
A portion of the sales proceeds were reinvested in replacement properties, with the remainder paid out to the shareholders. Generally, and subject to our ongoing qualification as a REIT, no provisions for income taxes are necessary except for taxes on undistributed REIT taxable income and taxes on the income generated by our taxable REIT subsidiaries (“TRS's”). Our TRS's are subject to corporate federal and state income tax on their taxable income at regular statutory rates, or as calculated under the alternative minimum tax, as appropriate. On April 5, 2011, we settled on the sale of Dulles Station, Phase I, an office property held by one of our TRS's. After the application of available net operating loss carryforwards, we recognized $1.1 million in net federal and state income tax liabilities during 2011 in connection with the sale and operations of the entities. During the fourth quarter of 2011, we recognized a $14.5 million impairment charge at Dulles Station, Phase II, a development property held by one of our TRS's (see note 3, Real Estate Investments). The impairment charge created a deferred tax asset of $5.7 million at this TRS, but we have determined that it is more likely than not that this deferred tax asset will not be realized. We have therefore recorded a valuation allowance for the full amount of the deferred tax asset related to the impairment charge at Dulles Station, Phase II. As of December 31, 2012, our TRS's had no net deferred tax asset and a deferred tax liability of $0.6 million. As of December 31, 2011, our TRS's had a net deferred tax asset of $0.1 million and a net deferred tax liability of $0.5 million. These are primarily related to temporary differences in the timing of the recognition of revenue, amortization and depreciation. There were no material income tax provisions or material net deferred income tax items for our TRS's for the year ended December 31, 2010. The following is a breakdown of the taxable percentage of our dividends for the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010,(unaudited):
| 2012 |  | 2011 |  | 2010
Ordinary income | 72 | % |  | 60 | % |  | 55 | %
Return of capital | 26 | % |  | 17 | % |  | 31 | %
Qualified dividends | — | % |  | 5 | % |  | — | %
Unrecaptured Section 1250 gain | 2 | % |  | 13 | % |  | 11 | %
Capital gain | — | % |  | 5 | % |  | 3 | %

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- Definition The entire disclosure for the nature of an entity's business, the major products or services it sells or provides and its principal markets, including the locations of those markets. If the entity operates in more than one business, the disclosure also indicates the relative importance of its operations in each business and the basis for the determination (for example, assets, revenues, or earnings). + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 275 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6927468&loc=d3e6003-108592 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher AICPA -Name Statement of Position (SOP) -Number 94-6 -Paragraph 10 -LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy. + Details
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