1.	Description of business, basis of presentation and recent accounting pronouncements

Description of Business

Marcus & Millichap, Inc., (the “Company”, “Marcus & Millichap”, or “MMI”), a Delaware corporation, is a brokerage firm specializing in commercial real estate investment sales, financing, research and advisory services. As of September 30, 2017, MMI operates 79 offices in the United States and Canada through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, Inc. (“MMREIS”), which includes the operations of Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (“MMCC”).

Reorganization and Initial Public Offering

MMI was formed in June 2013 in preparation for Marcus & Millichap Company (“MMC”) to spin-off its majority owned subsidiary, MMREIS (“Spin-Off”). Prior to the initial public offering (“IPO”) of MMI, all of the preferred and common stockholders of MMREIS (including MMC and employees of MMREIS) contributed all of their outstanding shares to MMI, in exchange for new MMI common stock. As a result, MMREIS became a wholly-owned subsidiary of MMI. Thereafter, MMC distributed 80.0% of the shares of MMI common stock to MMC’s shareholders and exchanged the remaining portion of its shares of MMI common stock for cancellation of indebtedness of MMC. MMI completed its IPO on October 30, 2013.

Basis of Presentation

The financial information presented in the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, has been prepared in accordance with rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for quarterly reports on Form 10-Qand Article 10-01 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and notes include all adjustments (consisting only of normal recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair presentation of the condensed consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the annual audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2016 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 16, 2017 with the SEC. The results of the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2017, or for other interim periods or future years.

Consolidation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the related disclosures at the date of the condensed consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Concentration of Credit Risk

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to a concentration of credit risk principally consist of cash and cash equivalents, due from independent contractors (included under other assets, net current and other assets non-current captions), investments in marketable securities, available-for-sale, security deposits (included under other assets, non-current caption) and commissions receivables. Cash and cash equivalents are placed with high-credit quality financial institutions and invested in high-credit quality money market funds and commercial paper.

To reduce its credit risk, the Company monitors the credit standing of the financial institutions that hold the Company’s cash and cash equivalents. The Company historically has not experienced any significant losses related to cash and cash equivalents.

 

The Company derives its revenues from a broad range of real estate investors, owners and users in the United States and Canada, none of which individually represents a significant concentration of credit risk. The Company requires collateral on a case-by-case basis. The Company maintains allowances, as needed, for estimated credit losses based on management’s assessment of the likelihood of collection. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016, no transaction represented 10% or more of total revenues. Further, while one or more transactions may represent 10% or more of commissions receivable at any reporting date, amounts due are typically collected within 10 days of settlement and, therefore, do not expose the Company to significant credit risk.

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016, the Company’s Canadian operations represented less than 1% of total revenues.

For the three months ended September 30, 2017, one office represented 10% or more of total revenues. For the three months ended September 30, 2016 and nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016, no office represented 10% or more of total revenues.

Segment Reporting

The Company follows the guidance for segment reporting, which requires reporting information on operating segments in interim and annual financial statements. An operating segment is defined as a component of an enterprise that engages in business activities from which it may earn revenues and incur expenses whose separate financial information is available and is evaluated regularly by the Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”) or decision making group, to perform resource allocations and performance assessments. The CODMs are the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. The CODMs review aggregated financial information presented on an office-by-office basis for purposes of making operating decisions, assessing financial performance and allocating resources. Based on the evaluation of the Company’s financial information, management believes that the Company’s offices on a consolidated basis represent individual operating segments with similar economic characteristics that meet the criteria for aggregation into a single reportable segment for financial reporting purposes.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Adopted

In March 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting (“ASU 2016-09”). ASU 2016-09 changes the accounting for share-based payment awards issued to employees. The Company adopted this new standard effective on January 1, 2017. The Company adopted the provisions of ASU 2016-09 on a prospective basis except for the change in the accounting for forfeitures, where the Company adopted the provision on a modified retrospective basis with a cumulative-effect adjustment as of January 1, 2017. The adoption of the new standard did not have a material impact on the Company’s condensed consolidated financial position or results of operations.

As a result of the adoption, in periods subsequent to December 31, 2016, windfall tax benefits, net are recorded as a discrete item in the Company’s provision for income taxes. See Note 10 – “Income Taxes” for additional information. Prior to the adoption, any windfall tax benefits, net were recorded in additional paid in capital. Additionally, in periods subsequent to December 31, 2016, excess tax benefits for share-based payments were included in cash flows from operating activities rather than cash flows from financing activities. Further, the Company changed its accounting for forfeitures from estimating awards that are not expected to vest to recording forfeitures when they actually occur. The cumulative effect adjustment as of January 1, 2017 related to forfeitures was a charge to retained earnings of approximately $52,000 (net of tax) and is expected to have a minor impact on the timing of stock based compensation subsequent to January 1, 2017. See Note 9 – “Stock-Based Compensation Plans” for additional information.

In May 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-09, Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Scope of Modification Accounting (“ASU 2017-09”), which provides guidance about which changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award require an entity to apply modification accounting in Topic 718. ASU 2017-09 clarifies when changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award must be accounted for as modifications. The guidance clarifies that modification accounting will be applied if the value, vesting conditions or classification of the award changes. ASU 2017-09 is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017 and early adoption is permitted. The Company adopted ASU 2017-09 during the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The adoption did not have any impact on the Company’s condensed consolidated financial position or results of operations.

 

Pending Adoption

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2014-09”), which supersedes virtually all of the current revenue recognition guidance under U.S. GAAP, and requires entities to recognize revenue for transfer to customer of promised goods or services in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled to receive in exchange for those goods or services. Subsequent to the issuance of ASU 2014-09, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-14, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606): Deferral of the Effective Date, ASU No. 2016-08, Revenue from Contacts with Customers: Principal Versus Agent Considerations, ASU No. 2016-10, Revenue from Contracts with Customers: Identifying Performance Obligations and Licensing, and ASU No. 2016-12,Revenue from Contracts with Customers: Narrow-Scope Improvements and Practical Expedients. The additional ASU’s clarified certain provisions of ASU 2014-09 in response to recommendations from the Transition Resources Group established by the FASB and extended the required adoption of ASU 2014-09 which is now effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017 and early adoption is permitted as of the original effective date.

ASU 2014-09 permits two implementation approaches, one requiring retrospective application of the new standard with restatement of prior years and one requiring prospective application of the new standard with disclosure of results under old standards. For the Company, the new standard will be effective January 1, 2018. The Company does not have multiple-element arrangements, variable consideration, licenses or long-term contracts with customers. Accordingly, the adoption of ASU 2014-09, as clarified, will not have a significant effect in the manner or timing of its revenue recognition.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02, Leases, to increase transparency and comparability by recognizing lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about leasing arrangements. The Company is still evaluating the impact of the new standard. The Company will be required to adopt the new standard in 2019, and the Company’s condensed consolidated balance sheets will be impacted by the recording of a lease liability and right of use asset for virtually all of its current operating leases. As of September 30, 2017, the Company has remaining contractual obligations for operating leases (autos and office), which aggregate approximately $83.2 million. Accordingly, we anticipate that the adoption of the new standard will have a material impact on the Company’s condensed consolidated balance sheet. The amount of which and the potential impact on the condensed consolidated statements of net and comprehensive income and condensed consolidated statements of cash flows has yet to be determined.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (“ASU 2016-13”). ASU 2016-13 is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019 and early adoption is permitted. For the Company, the new standard will be effective January 1, 2020. Under ASU 2016-13, the Company will be required to use an expected-loss model for its marketable securities, available-for sale, which requires that credit losses be presented as an allowance rather than as an impairment write-down. Reversals of credit losses (in situations in which the estimate of credit losses declines) is permitted in the reporting period the change occurs. Current U.S. GAAP prohibits reflecting reversals of credit losses in current period earnings. At September 30, 2017, the Company had $128.3 million in marketable securities, available for sale which would be subject to this new standard. As of September 30, 2017, these marketable securities, available for sale have an average credit rating of AA and no impairment write-downs have been recorded. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of this new standard on its investment policy and investments.