SEC Filing: Empire State Realty Trust Income Tax Treatment according to Malkin Holdings LLC
Empire State Realty Trust Inc S-4
Filed with SEC 12/21/12
Final Version
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1541401/000119312512512349/d283359ds4a.htm
page 94
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U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations of the Consolidation Proposal
It is expected that the consolidation should be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as follows:
(i)If you receive solely shares of Class A common stock, the consolidation should be treated as a taxable sale of your participation interest in which gain or loss is recognized. Such gain or loss should generally equal the difference between your amount realized (which generally will equal the fair market value of shares of Class A common stock that you receive, plus any distribution you receive of consolidation expenses that the operating partnership pays as a reimbursement to your subject LLC, plus the share of liabilities associated with your participation interests that you are deemed to be relieved of under U.S. federal income tax law) and your adjusted tax basis in your participation interests. You will realize “phantom income” if you have a “negative capital account” with respect to your participation interest. In each of 250 West 57th St. Associates L.L.C. and 60 East 42nd St. Associates L.L.C., original participants have a “negative capital account.” If you are an individual or a partnership for New York State personal income tax purposes, any gain that you recognize in the consolidation will generally be treated as New York source income for New York State personal income tax purposes. As a result, you (or, if you are a partnership, any of your partners who are individuals) will generally be subject to New York State personal income tax on such gain even if you are treated as a New York nonresident for purposes of the New York State personal income tax. The New York City personal income tax should not apply to individuals who are treated as New York City nonresidents for purposes of the tax. If all of your participation interest is exchanged for Class A common stock pursuant to the consolidation, suspended passive activity losses associated with your participation interest, if any, may be eligible for treatment as losses that are not from a passive activity to the extent that they exceed income and gains from passive activities for your taxable year that includes the consolidation.
(ii)If you receive solely operating partnership units, or if you receive a combination of (a) operating partnership units and (b) shares of common stock that do not exceed your allocable share, after certain adjustments, of certain qualified capital expenditures of the subject LLC, as further described under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences of the Consolidation—Receipt of Operating Partnership Units” (the “reimbursement amount”), the consolidation should be treated as a tax-deferred contribution by the subject LLC of the subject LLC’s property to the operating partnership in exchange for operating partnership units and common stock as a reimbursement of certain qualified capital expenditures, followed by a tax-deferred distribution of such operating partnership units and common stock to you. You should not generally recognize gain unless (i) the “disguised sale” rules of the Code apply, (ii) you are deemed to receive a constructive distribution of cash in excess of your tax basis in your operating partnership units under Sections 731 and 752(b) of the Code due to a reduction in your share of partnership liabilities or (iii) you have “at-risk” recapture income under Section 465(e) of the Code. To the extent that you do not recognize gain in the consolidation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, you also generally should not recognize gain for purposes of the New York State personal income tax and, if applicable, the New York City personal income tax.
(iii)If you receive a combination of (a) operating partnership units and (b) shares of common stock in excess of your reimbursement amount, you should be treated as first selling a portion of your participation interest for such excess shares of common stock in a transaction in which gain or loss is recognized. Following such sale, the subject LLC should be treated as contributing the portion of its property not attributable to participation interests otherwise treated as having been sold to the operating partnership in exchange for operating partnership units and common stock as a reimbursement of
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qualified capital expenditures in a tax-deferred contribution, and the subject LLC should be treated as distributing operating partnership units and shares of common stock equal to your reimbursement amount to you in a tax-deferred distribution.If you receive solely Class A shares of common stock in the consolidation, or if you receive a combination of (a) operating partnership units and (b) an amount of common stock in excess of your reimbursement amount, upon receipt of such shares of common stock, you will be deemed to have consented to treat the consolidation as a sale of all or a portion of your participation interest in exchange for such shares of common stock for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
If you consent to the voluntary pro rata reimbursement program, you may be treated as receiving shares of common stock that you would otherwise receive in the consolidation and immediately transferring such shares of common stock to the supervisor as a reimbursement payment. For this purpose, even if you elect to receive solely operating partnership units in the consolidation, you should be treated as receiving shares of common stock equal to the amount that you are treated as transferring to the supervisor as a reimbursement payment. Accordingly, the gain or loss that you recognize in the consolidation transaction should take into account your deemed receipt of such common stock. You should be entitled to deduct the value of the shares of common stock that you are deemed to pay to the supervisor as an expense associated with your participation interest in your subject LLC. This deduction should offset the amount of gain you recognize, or increase the amount of losses you would otherwise recognize, as a result of your deemed receipt of shares of common stock. However, this deduction may be subject to certain limitations depending on your individual circumstances and may be required to be capitalized, and you should consult with your tax advisor regarding your ability to utilize all or a portion of this deduction for U.S. federal income tax purposes. See “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations of the Voluntary Pro Rata Reimbursement Program for the Former Property Manager and Leasing Agent Legal Proceedings.”
Whether you receive operating partnership units, Class A common stock, or Class B common stock in connection with the consolidation, you will be allocated your proportionate share of the income and other tax items of the subject LLC for the period ending with the date of closing of the consolidation. You will have to report such income even though you do not receive cash in consideration for your participation interest.
Participants should carefully review “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences of the Consolidation.” Participants should consult with their tax advisors with regard to the U.S. federal income tax, New York State personal income tax and New York City personal income tax consequences of receiving operating partnership units or common stock in exchange for their participation interests in their particular circumstances.