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Real Estate Properties
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2011
Real Estate Properties  
Real Estate Properties

4. Real Estate Properties

        Our real estate properties, at cost after impairments, consisted of land of $1,360,773, buildings and improvements of $4,343,991 and furniture, fixtures and equipment of $431,332, as of December 31, 2011; and land of $1,389,594, buildings and improvements of $4,443,904 and furniture, fixtures and equipment of $465,584 as of December 31, 2010.

        During 2011, 2010 and 2009, we invested $132,299, $97,816 and $63,390, respectively, in certain of our properties which resulted in increases in our contractual annual minimum returns and rents of $11,346, $9,782 and $5,627 in 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

        At December 31, 2011, 14 of our hotels were on leased land. In each case, the remaining term of the ground lease (including renewal options) is in excess of 25 years, and the ground lessors are unrelated to us. Ground rent payable under nine of the ground leases is generally calculated as a percentage of hotel revenues. Twelve of the 14 ground leases require minimum annual rents averaging $242 per year; future rents under two ground leases have been pre-paid. Twenty of our travel centers are on land leased partially or in its entirety. The remaining terms on the leases range from 7 to 39 years with rents averaging $446 per year. Generally payments of ground lease obligations are made by our managers or tenants. However, if a manager or tenant did not perform obligations under a ground lease or did not renew any ground lease, we might have to perform obligations under the ground lease or renew the ground lease in order to protect our investment in the affected property. Any pledge of our interests in a ground lease may require the consent of the applicable ground lessor and its lenders.

        In July 2011, we sold our Holiday Inn branded hotel in Memphis, Tennessee, for net proceeds of $6,905.

        At December 31, 2011, 21 hotels were held for sale. See Note 12 for further information relating to our hotels held for sale.

        On January 31, 2012, we completed an acquisition of the entities which own the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge, MA (400 rooms) and lease the Royal Sonesta Hotel in New Orleans, LA (483 rooms) for $150,500, excluding acquisition costs. We funded these purchases with proceeds from the offering of our Series D Preferred Shares described above. Simultaneous with this acquisition, we entered into management agreements with Sonesta International Hotels Corporation (formerly known as Sonesta Acquisition Corp.), or Sonesta. See Note 8 for further information about these transactions.