This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the federal securities laws. In particular, statements pertaining to our businessSecurities Act and growth strategies, investment, financing and leasing activities and trends in our business, including trends inSection 21E of the market for long-term, triple-net leases of freestanding, single-tenant properties, contain forward-looking statements.Exchange Act. When used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the words “estimate,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “believe,” “intend,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seek,” “approximately” or “plan,” or the negative of these words and phrases or similar words or phrases whichthat are predictions of or indicate future events or trends and which do not relate solely to historical matters are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You can also identify forward-looking statements by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions of management.

Forward-looking statements involve numerous risks and uncertainties and you should not rely on them as predictions of future events. Forward-looking statements depend on assumptions, data or methods which may be incorrect or imprecise and we may not be able to realize them. We do not guarantee that the transactions and events described will happen as described (or that they will happen at all).

You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. While forward-looking statements reflect our good faith beliefs, they are not guarantees of future performance. We disclaim any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect changes in underlying assumptions or factors, new information, data or methods, future events or other changes, except as required by law.

Set forth below are some (but not all) of the risk factors that could adversely affect our business and financial performance. Because we operate in a highly competitive and rapidly changing environment, new risk factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors, nor can management assess the impact of all such risk factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results.

The occurrence of any of the risks described above may cause the value of our real estate to decline, which could materially and adversely affect us.

Periods of volatility in the credit and capital markets negatively affect the amounts, sources and cost of capital available to us. We primarily use external financing to fund acquisitions and to refinance indebtedness as it matures. If sufficient sources of external financing are not available to us on cost effective terms, we could be forced to limit our acquisition activity and/or to take other actions to fund our business activities and repayment of debt, such as selling assets. To the extent that we access capital at a higher cost (reflected in higher interest rates for debt financing or lower stock price for equity financing), our acquisition yields, earnings per share and cash flow could be adversely affected.

The success of our investments is materially dependent on the financial stability of our tenants’ financial condition and leasing practices. Adverse economic conditions such as high unemployment levels, interest rates, tax rates and fuel and energy costs may have an impact on the results of operations and financial condition of our tenants and result in a decline in rent or an increased incidence of default under existing leases. Such adverse economic conditions may also reduce overall demand for rental space, which could adversely affect our ability to maintain our current tenants and attract new tenants.

At any given time, our tenants may experience a downturn in their business that may weaken the operating results and financial condition of individual properties or of their business as whole. As a result, a tenant may delay lease commencement, decline to extend a lease upon its expiration, fail to make rental payments when due, become insolvent or declare bankruptcy. We depend on our tenants to operate the properties we own in a manner which generates revenues sufficient to allow them to meet their obligations to us, including their obligations to pay rent, maintain certain insurance coverage and pay real estate taxes and maintain the properties in a manner so as not to jeopardize their operating licenses or regulatory status. The ability of our tenants to fulfill their obligations under our leases may depend, in part, upon the overall profitability of their operations. Cash flow generated by certain tenant businesses may not be sufficient for a tenant to meet its obligations to us. Although our occupied properties are generally operationally essential to our tenants, meaning the property is essential to the tenant’s generation of sales and profits, this does not guarantee that a tenant’s operations at a particular property will be successful or that the tenant will be able to meet all of its obligations to us. Our tenants’ failure to successfully operate their businesses could materially and adversely affect us.

Our strategy focuses primarily on investing in single-tenant triple-net leased properties throughout the U.S. The financial failure of, or default in payment by, a single tenant under its lease is likely to cause a significant reduction in, or elimination of, our rental revenue from that property and a reduction in the value of the property. We may also experience difficulty or a significant delay in re-leasing or selling such property. This risk is magnified in situations where we lease

As of December 31, 2017, Shopko represents our most significant tenant. Currently we lease 11699 properties to Shopko, primarily pursuant to 13three master leases.leases (relating to 59, 34 and 4 properties, respectively) and two single site leases, under which we received approximately $3.9 million in Contractual Rent per month. The Shopko leases are guaranteed by Specialty Retail Shops Holding Corp., the parent company of Shopko. Revenues generated from Shopko represented 8.2%7.7% of our Normalized Rental RevenueContractual Rent for the month ended December 31, 2016.2017. Because a significant portion of our revenues are derived from rental revenues received from Shopko, any default, breach or delay in the payment of rent by Shopko may materially and adversely affect us.

As a result of the significant number of properties leased to Shopko, our results of operations and financial condition are closely tiedsignificantly impacted to Shopko's performance under its leases, which is ultimately tied to the performance of its stores and the retail industry in which it operates. Shopko operates as a multi-department general merchandise retailer and retail health services provider primarily in mid-size and large communities in the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, North Central and Western Mountain states. Shopko is subject to the following risks, as well as other risks that we are not currently aware of, that could adversely affect its performance and thus its ability to pay rent to us:

A substantial portion our properties are leased to unrated tenants whom we determine, through our internal underwriting and credit analysis, to be creditworthy.credit worthy. Many of our tenants are required to provide financial information, which includes balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement data, on a quarterly and/or annual basis, and approximately 49.7%50.6% of our lease investment portfolio requires the tenant to provide property-level performance information, which includes income statement data on a quarterly and/or annual basis. To assist in our determination of a tenant’s credit quality, we license a product from Moody’s Analytics that provides an EDF and a “shadow rating,” and we evaluate a lease’s property-level rent coverage ratio. An EDF is only an estimate of default probability based, in part, on assumptions incorporated into the product. A shadow rating does not constitute a published credit rating and lacks the extensive company participation that is typically involved when a rating agency publishes a rating; accordingly, a shadow rating may not be as indicative of creditworthiness as a rating published by Moody’s, S&P, or another nationally

As of December 31, 2016,2017, leases representing approximately 69%34.1% and 17%16.6% of our Normalized Rental RevenueContractual Rent were with tenants in the traditional retail and restaurant industries, respectively, and we may acquire additional traditional retail and restaurant properties in the future. Accordingly, decreases in the demand for traditional retail and/or restaurant spaces adversely impact us. The market for traditional retail and restaurant space has previously been, and could continue to be, adversely affected by weakness in the national, regional and local economies, the adverse financial condition of some large traditional retail and restaurant companies, the ongoing consolidation in the traditional retail and restaurant industries, the excess amount of traditional retail and restaurant space in a number of markets and, in the case of the traditional retail industry, increasing consumer purchases through catalogs or over the Internet. To the extent that these conditions continue, they are likely to negatively affect market rents for traditional retail and restaurant space, which could materially and adversely affect us.

As of December 31, 2016, 12.5%2017, 12.0% of our portfolio (as a percentage of Normalized Rental Revenue)Contractual Rent) was located in Texas, representing the highest concentration of our assets. Geographic concentration exposes us to greater economic or regulatory risks than if we owned a more geographically diverse portfolio. We are susceptible to adverse developments in the economic or regulatory environments of the geographic areas in which we concentrate (or in which we may develop a substantial concentration of assets in the future), such as business layoffs or downsizing, industry slowdowns, relocations of businesses, increases in real estate and other taxes or costs of complying with governmental regulations.

Our results of operations depend on our ability to strategically lease space in our properties (by renewing or re-leasing expiring leases and leasing vacant space), optimize our tenant mix or lease properties on more economically favorable terms. As of December 31, 2016,2017, leases representing approximately 3.6%2.8% of our rental revenue will expire during 2017.2018. As of December 31, 2016, 462017, 19 of our properties, representing approximately 1.8%0.8% of our total number ofeconomically yielding owned properties, were vacant.Vacant. Current tenants may decline, or may not have the financial resources available, to renew current leases and we cannot guarantee that leases that are renewed will have terms that are as economically favorable to us as the expiring lease terms. If tenants do not renew the leases as they expire, we will have to find new tenants to lease our properties and there is no guarantee that we will be able to find new tenants or that our properties will be re-leased at rental rates equal to or above the current average rental rates or that substantial rent abatements, tenant improvement allowances, early termination rights, below-market renewal options or other lease incentive payments will not be offered to attract new tenants. We may experience significant costs in connection with renewing, leasing or re-leasing a significant number of our properties, which could materially and adversely affect us.

Most of our leases contain rent escalators, or provisions that periodically increase the base rent payable by the tenant under the lease. Although some of our rent escalators increase rent at a fixed amount on fixed dates, mostas of December 31, 2017, approximately 89.2% of our rent escalators increase rent by the lesser of (a) 1 to 1.25 timesa multiple of any increase in the CPI over a specified period or (b) a fixed percentage. If the product of any increase in the CPI multiplied by the applicable factor is less than the fixed percentage, the increased rent we are entitled to receive will be less than what we otherwise would have been entitled to receive if the rent escalator was based solely on a fixed percentage. Therefore, during periods of low inflation or deflation, small increases or decreases in the CPI will subject us to the risk of receiving lower rental revenue than we otherwise would have been entitled to receive if our rent escalators were based solely on fixed percentages or amounts. Conversely, if the product of any increase in the CPI multiplied by the applicable factor is more than the fixed percentage, the increased rent we are entitled to receive will be less than what we otherwise would have been entitled to receive if the rent escalator was based solely on an increase in CPI. Therefore, periods of high inflation will subject us to the risk of receiving lower rental revenue than we otherwise would have been entitled to receive if our rent escalators were based solely on CPI increases.

The occurrence of a tenant bankruptcy or insolvency could diminish the income we receive from that tenant’s lease or leases. In particular, the traditional retail industry is facing reductions in sales revenues and increased bankruptcies throughout the United States, and revenues generated from traditional retail tenants represented 34.1% of our Contractual Rent for the month ended December 31, 2017. If a tenant becomes bankrupt or insolvent, federal law may prohibit us from evicting such tenant based solely upon such bankruptcy or insolvency. In addition, a bankrupt or insolvent tenant may be authorized to reject and terminate its lease or leases with us. Any claims against such bankrupt tenant for unpaid future rent would be subject to statutory limitations that would likely result in our receipt of rental revenues that are substantially less than the contractually specified rent we are owed under the lease or leases. In addition, any claim we have for unpaid past rent, if any, may not be paid in full. We may also be unable to re-lease a terminated or rejected space or to re-lease it on comparable or more favorable terms.

Moreover, tenants who are considering filing for bankruptcy protection may request that we agree to amendments of their master leases to remove certain of the properties they lease from us under such master leases. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to sell or re-lease such properties or that lease termination fees, if any, received in exchange for such releases will be sufficient to make up for the rental revenues lost as a result of such lease amendments. As a result, tenant bankruptcies may materially and adversely affect us.

The loss of a tenant, either through lease expiration or tenant bankruptcy or insolvency, may require us to spend significant amounts of capital to renovate the property before it is suitable for a new tenant. Many of the leases we enter into or acquire are for properties that are specially suited to the particular business of our tenants. Because these properties have been designed or physically modified for a particular tenant, if the current lease is terminated or not renewed, we may be required to renovate the property at substantial costs, decrease the rent we charge or provide other concessions in order to lease the property to another tenant. In the event we are required to sell the property, we may have difficulty selling it to a party other than the tenant due to the special purpose for which the property may have been designed or modified. This potential illiquidity may limit our ability to quickly modify our portfolio in response to changes in economic or other conditions, including tenant demand. These limitations may materially and adversely affect us.

We may continue to expand our operations through additional acquisitions and other strategic transactions, and modernize our information technology and management systems through new systems implementations, some of which may involve complex challenges. Our future success will depend, in part, upon our ability to manage our expansion opportunities, integrate new operations into our existing business in an efficient and timely manner, successfully monitor our operations, costs and regulatory compliance, and develop and maintain other necessary systems, processes and internal controls. We cannot guarantee that our expansion or acquisition opportunities will be successful or that we will realize their expected operating efficiencies, cost savings, revenue enhancements, synergies or other benefits.

If any of these risks are realized, we may be materially and adversely affected.

We rely on information systems across our operations and corporate functions, including finance and accounting, and depend on such systems to ensure payment of obligations, collection of cash, data warehousing to support analytics, and other various processes and procedures. Our ability to efficiently manage our business depends significantly on the reliability and capacity of these systems. The failure of these systems to operate effectively, maintenance problems, upgrading or transitioning to new platforms, or a breach in security of these systems, such as in the event of cyber-attacks, could result in the theft of intellectual property, personal information or personal property, damage to our reputation and third-party claims, as well as reduced efficiency in our operations and in the accuracy in our internal and external financial reporting. The remediation of such problems could result in significant unplanned expenditures.

The real estate investments made, and expected to be made, by us are relatively difficult to sell quickly. As a result, our ability to promptly sell one or more properties in our portfolio in response to changing economic, financial or investment conditions is limited. Return of capital and realization of gains, if any, from an investment generally will occur upon disposition or refinancing of the underlying property. We may be unable to realize our investment objective by sale, other disposition or refinancing at attractive prices within any given period of time or may otherwise be unable to complete any exit strategy. In particular, these risks could arise from weakness in or even the lack of an established market for a property, changes in the financial condition or prospects of prospective purchasers, changes in national or international economic conditions and changes in laws, regulations or fiscal policies of the jurisdiction in which a property is located.

In addition, the Code imposes restrictions on a REIT’s ability to dispose of properties that are not applicable to other types of real estate companies. In particular, the tax laws applicable to REITs effectively require that we hold our properties for investment, rather than primarily for sale in the ordinary course of business, which may cause us to forgo or defer sales of properties that otherwise would be in our best interest. Therefore, we may not be able to vary our portfolio in response to economic or other conditions promptly or on favorable terms, which may materially and adversely affect us.

We compete with numerous developers, owners and operators of properties, many of which own properties similar to ours in the same markets in which our properties are located. If our competitors offer space at rental rates below current market rates or below the rental rates we currently charge our tenants, we may lose existing or potential tenants and we may be pressured to reduce our rental rates or to offer more substantial rent abatements, tenant improvements,

early termination rights, below-market renewal options or other lease incentive payments in order to retain tenants

We also face competition for acquisitions of real property from investors, including traded and non-traded public REITs, private equity investors and institutional investment funds, some of which have greater financial resources than we do, a greater ability to borrow funds to acquire properties and the ability to accept more risk than we can prudently manage. This competition may increase the demand for the types of properties in which we typically invest and, therefore, reduce the number of suitable acquisition opportunities available to us and increase the prices paid for such acquisition properties. This competition will increase if investments in real estate become more attractive relative to other types of investment. Accordingly, competition for the acquisition of real property could materially and adversely affect us.

We have originated or acquired long-term, commercial mortgage and other loans. The success of our loan investments is materially dependent on the financial stability of our borrowers. The success of our borrowers is dependent on each of their individual businesses and their industries, which could be affected by economic conditions in general, changes in consumer trends and preferences and other factors over which neither they nor we have control. A default of a borrower on its loan payments to us that would prevent us from earning interest or receiving a return of the principal of our loan could materially and adversely affect us. In the event of a default, we may also experience delays in enforcing our rights as lender and may incur substantial costs in collecting the amounts owed to us and in liquidating any collateral.

Foreclosure and other similar proceedings used to enforce payment of real estate loans are generally subject to principles of equity, which are designed to relieve the indebted party from the legal effect of that party’s default. Foreclosure and other similar laws may limit our right to obtain a deficiency judgment against the defaulting party after a foreclosure or sale. The application of any of these principles may lead to a loss or delay in the payment on loans we hold, which in turn could reduce the amounts we have available to make distributions. Further, in the event we have to foreclose on a property, the amount we receive from the foreclosure sale of the property may be inadequate to fully pay the amounts owed to us by the borrower and our costs incurred to foreclose, repossess and sell the property which could materially and adversely affect us.

Our investments in mortgage loans are subject to risk of default by the borrowers and to interest rate risks. To the extent we incur delays in liquidating defaulted mortgage loans, we may not be able to obtain all amounts due to us under such loans. Further, we will not know whether the values of the properties securing the mortgage loans will remain at the levels existing on the dates of origination of those mortgage loans or the dates of our investment in the loans. If the values of the underlying properties decline, the value of the collateral securing our mortgage loans will also decline and if we were to foreclose on any of the properties securing the mortgage loans, we may not be able to sell or lease them for an amount equal to the unpaid amounts due to us under the mortgage loans. As such, defaults on mortgage loans in which we invest may materially and adversely affect us.

Increased inflation could have a negative impact on variable-rate debt we currently have or that we may incur in the future. Our leases typically contain provisions designed to mitigate the adverse impact of inflation on our results of operations. Because tenants are typically required to pay all property operating expenses, increases in property-level expenses at our leased properties generally do not affect us. However, increased operating expenses at vacant properties and the limited number of properties that are not subject to full triple-net leases could cause us to incur additional operating expenses, which could increase our exposure to inflation. Additionally, the increases in rent provided by many of our leases may not keep up with the rate of inflation. Increased costs may also have an adverse impact on our tenants if increases in their operating expenses exceed increases in revenue, which may adversely affect the tenants’ ability to pay rent owed to us.

We may issue shares of our common stock or other securities without stockholder approval, including shares issued to satisfy REIT dividend distribution requirements. The Operating Partnership may issue partnership interests to third parties, and such partnership interests would be exchangeable for cash or, at our election, shares of our common stock at specified ratios set when partnership interests in the Operating Partnership are issued. Our existing stockholders have no preemptive rights to acquire any of these securities, and any issuance of equity securities by us or the Operating Partnership may dilute stockholder investment.

Effective internal controls over financial reporting are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports, effectively prevent fraud and operate successfully as a public company. If we cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our reputation and operating results would be harmed. We are required to perform system and process evaluation and testing of our internal control over financial reporting to allow management to report on, and our independent registered public accounting firm to attest to, the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

The market price of our common stock will generally be influenced by the dividend yield on our common stock (as a percentage of the price of our common stock) relative to market interest rates. An increase in market interest rates, which are currently at low levels relative to historical rates, may lead prospective purchasers of shares of our common

If we cannot obtain capital from third-party sources, we may not be able to acquire properties when strategic opportunities exist, meet the capital and operating needs of our existing properties, satisfy our debt service obligations or make the cash distributions to our stockholders necessary to maintain our qualification as a REIT.

Historically, we have raised a significant amount of debt capital through our Spirit Master Funding Program and the CMBS market. We have generally used the proceeds from these financings to repay debt and fund real estate acquisitions. As of December 31, 2016,2017, we had issued notes under our Spirit Master Funding Program in eightnine different classes over fivesix separate issuances with an aggregate outstanding principal balance of $1.67$2.25 billion. The Master Trust Notes had a weighted average maturity of 6.25.2 years as of December 31, 2016.2017. In addition, we had CMBS loans with an aggregate outstanding principal balance of $0.53$0.33 billion and an average maturity of 3.84.6 years as of December 31, 2016.2017. Our obligations under these loans are generally secured by liens on certain of our properties. In the case of our Spirit Master Funding Program, subject to certain conditions, we may substitute real estate collateral within our two securitization trusts from time to time. No assurance can be given that the CMBS market will be available to us in the future, whether to refinance existing debt or to raise additional debt capital. Moreover, we view our ability to substitute collateral under our Spirit Master Funding Program favorably, and no assurance can be given that financing facilities offering similar flexibility will be available to us in the future.

We evaluate real estate assets for impairment based on the projected cash flow of the asset over our anticipated holding period. If we change our intended holding period due to our intention to sell or otherwise dispose of an asset, we must reevaluate whether that asset is impaired under GAAP. Depending on the carrying value of the property at the time we change our intention and the amount that we estimate we would receive on disposal, we may record an impairment loss that would adversely affect our financial results. This loss could be material to our assets in the period that it is recognized.

Our continued success and our ability to manage anticipated future growth depend, in large part, upon the efforts of key personnel, particularly our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of our board of directors, Thomas H. Nolan, Jr., our President and Chief Operating Officer, Jackson Hsieh, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Phillip D. Joseph, Jr., and our Executive Vice President and Chief Acquisitions Officer, Boyd Messmann, who havehas extensive market knowledge and relationships and exerciseexercises substantial influence over our operational, financing, acquisition and disposition activity. Among the reasons that they are important to our success is that each has a national

Many of our other key executive personnel, particularly our executive and senior vice presidents, also have extensive experience and strong reputations in the real estate industry and have been instrumental in setting our strategic direction, operating our business, identifying, recruiting and training key personnel and arranging necessary financing. In particular, the extent and nature of the relationships that these individuals have developed with financial institutions and existing and prospective tenants is critically important to the success of our business. The loss of services of one or more members of our senior management team, or our inability to attract and retain highly qualified personnel, could adversely affect our business, diminish our investment opportunities and weaken our relationships with lenders, business partners, existing and prospective tenants and industry personnel, which could materially and adversely affect us.

In the ordinary course of business, we may become subject to litigation, including claims relating to our operations, security offerings and otherwise. Some of these claims may result in significant defense costs and potentially significant judgments against us, some of which are not, or cannot be, insured against. We generally intend to vigorously defend ourselves. However, we cannot be certain of the ultimate outcomes of any claims that may arise in the future. Resolution of these types of matters against us may result in our having to pay significant fines, judgments, or settlements, which, if uninsured, or if the fines, judgments, and settlements exceed insured levels, could adversely impact our earnings and cash flows, thereby materially and adversely affecting us. Certain litigation or the resolution of certain litigation may affect the availability or cost of some of our insurance coverage, which could materially and adversely impact us, expose us to increased risks that would be uninsured, and materially and adversely impact our ability to attract directors and officers.

There may be environmental liabilities associated with our properties of which we are unaware. We obtain Phase I environmental site assessments on all properties we finance or acquire. The Phase I environmental site assessments are limited in scope and therefore may not reveal all environmental conditions affecting a property. Therefore, there could be undiscovered environmental liabilities on the properties we own. Some of our properties use, or may have used in the past, underground tanks for the storage of petroleum-based products or waste products that could create a potential for release of hazardous substances or penalties if tanks do not comply with legal standards. If environmental contamination exists on our properties, we could be subject to strict, joint and/or several liability for the contamination by virtue of our ownership interest. Some of our properties may contain ACM. Strict environmental laws govern the presence, maintenance and removal of ACM and such laws may impose fines and penalties for failure to comply with these requirements or expose us to third-party liability (e.g., liability for personal injury associated with exposure to asbestos). Strict environmental laws also apply to other activities that can occur on a property, such as air emissions and water discharges, and such laws may impose fines and penalties for violations.

The presence of hazardous substances on a property may adversely affect our ability to sell, lease or improve the property or to borrow using the property as collateral. In addition, environmental laws may create liens on contaminated properties in favor of the government for damages and costs it incurs to address such contamination. Moreover, if contamination is discovered on our properties, environmental laws may impose restrictions on the manner in which they may be used or businesses may be operated, and these restrictions may require substantial expenditures.

Our environmental liabilities may include property damage, personal injury, investigation and clean-up costs. These costs could be substantial. Although we may obtain insurance for environmental liability for certain properties that are deemed to warrant coverage, our insurance may be insufficient to address any particular environmental situation and we may be unable to continue to obtain insurance for environmental matters, at a reasonable cost or at all, in the future. If our environmental liability insurance is inadequate, we may become subject to material losses for environmental liabilities. Our ability to receive the benefits of any environmental liability insurance policy will depend on the financial stability of our insurance company and the position it takes with respect to our insurance policies. If we were to become subject to significant environmental liabilities, we could be materially and adversely affected.

Most of the environmental risks discussed above refer to properties that we own or may acquire in the future. However, each of the risks identified also applies to the owners (and potentially, the lessees) of the properties that secure each of the loans we have made and any loans we may acquire or make in the future. Therefore, the existence of environmental conditions could diminish the value of each of the loans and the abilities of the borrowers to repay the loans and could materially and adversely affect us.

When excessive moisture accumulates in buildings or on building materials, mold growth may occur, particularly if the moisture problem remains undiscovered or is not addressed over a period of time. Some molds may produce airborne toxins or irritants. Concern about indoor exposure to mold has been increasing, as exposure to mold may cause a variety of adverse health effects and symptoms, including allergic or other reactions. As a result, should our tenants or their employees or customers be exposed to mold at any of our properties we could be required to undertake a costly remediation program to contain or remove the mold from the affected property. In addition, exposure to mold by our tenants or others could subject us to liability if property damage or health concerns arise. If we were to become subject to significant mold-related liabilities, we could be materially and adversely affected.

Our tenants are required to maintain liability and property insurance coverage for the properties they lease from us pursuant to triple-net leases. Pursuant to such leases, our tenants are generally required to name us (and any of our lenders that have a mortgage on the property leased by the tenant) as additional insureds on their liability policies and additional named insured and/or loss payee (or mortgagee, in the case of our lenders) on their property policies. All tenants are required to maintain casualty coverage and most carry limits at 100% of replacement cost. Depending on the location of the property, losses of a catastrophic nature, such as those caused by earthquakes and floods, may be covered by insurance policies that are held by our tenant with limitations such as large deductibles or co-payments that a tenant may not be able to meet. In addition, losses of a catastrophic nature, such as those caused by wind/hail, hurricanes, terrorism or acts of war, may be uninsurable or not economically insurable. In the event there is damage to our properties that is not covered by insurance and such properties are subject to recourse indebtedness, we will continue to be liable for the indebtedness, even if these properties are irreparably damaged.

Inflation, changes in building codes and ordinances, environmental considerations, and other factors, including terrorism or acts of war, may make any insurance proceeds we receive insufficient to repair or replace a property if it is damaged or destroyed. In that situation, the insurance proceeds received may not be adequate to restore our economic position with respect to the affected real property. Furthermore, in the event we experience a substantial or comprehensive loss of one of our properties, we may not be able to rebuild such property to its existing specifications without significant capital expenditures which may exceed any amounts received pursuant to insurance policies, as reconstruction or improvement of such a property would likely require significant upgrades to meet zoning and building code requirements. The loss of our capital investment in or anticipated future returns from our properties due to material uninsured losses could materially and adversely affect us.

Our properties are subject to the ADA. Under the ADA, all public accommodations must meet federal requirements related to access and use by disabled persons. Compliance with the ADA requirements could require removal of access barriers and non-compliance could result in imposition of fines by the U.S. government or an award of damages to private litigants, or both. While our tenants are obligated by law to comply with the ADA and typically obligated under our leases and financing agreements to cover costs associated with compliance, if required changes involve greater expenditures than anticipated or if the changes must be made on a more accelerated basis than anticipated, our tenants' ability to cover the costs could be adversely affected. We may be required to expend our own funds to comply with the provisions of the ADA, which could materially and adversely affect us.

In addition, we are required to operate our properties in compliance with fire and safety regulations, building codes and other land use regulations, as they may be adopted by governmental agencies and bodies and become applicable to our properties. We may be required to make substantial capital expenditures to comply with those requirements and may be required to obtain approvals from various authorities with respect to our properties, including prior to acquiring a property or when undertaking renovations of any of our existing properties. There can be no assurance that existing

laws and regulatory policies will not adversely affect us or the timing or cost of any future acquisitions or renovations, or that additional regulations will not be adopted that increase such delays or result in additional costs. Additionally, failure to comply with any of these requirements could result in the imposition of fines by governmental authorities or awards of damages to private litigants. While we intend to only acquire properties that we believe are currently in substantial compliance with all regulatory requirements, these requirements may change and new requirements may be imposed which would require significant unanticipated expenditures by us and could materially and adversely affect us.

From time to time, we have and may continue to acquire C corporations in transactions in which the basis of the corporations’ assets in our hands is determined by reference to the basis of the assets in the hands of the acquired corporations, or carry-over basis transactions.

If we acquire any asset from a corporation that is or has been a C corporation in a carry-over basis transaction, and we subsequently recognize gain on the disposition of the asset during the five-year period beginning on the date on which we acquired the asset, then we will be required to pay tax at the highest regular corporate tax rate on this gain to the extent of the excess of (1) the fair market value of the asset over (2) our adjusted basis in the asset, in each case determined as of the date on which we acquired the asset. Any taxes we pay as a result of such gain would reduce the amount available for distribution to our stockholders. The imposition of such tax may require us to forgo an otherwise attractive disposition of any assets we acquire from a C corporation in a carry-over basis transaction, and as a result may reduce the liquidity of our portfolio of investments. In addition, in such a carry-over basis transaction, we will succeed to any tax liabilities and earnings and profits of the acquired C corporation. To qualify as a REIT, we must distribute any non-REIT earnings and profits by the close of the taxable year in which such transaction occurs. Any adjustments to the acquired corporation’s income for taxable years ending on or before the date of the transaction, including as a result of an examination of the corporation’s tax returns by the IRS, could affect the calculation of the corporation’s earnings and profits. If the IRS were to determine that we acquired non-REIT earnings and profits from a corporation that we failed to distribute prior to the end of the taxable year in which the carry-over basis transaction occurred, we could avoid disqualification as a REIT by paying a “deficiency dividend.” Under these procedures, we generally would be required to distribute any such non-REIT earnings and profits to our stockholders within 90 days of the determination and pay a statutory interest charge at a specified rate to the IRS. Such a distribution would be in addition to the distribution of REIT taxable income necessary to satisfy the REIT distribution requirement and may require that we borrow funds to make the distribution even if the then-prevailing market conditions are not favorable for borrowings. In addition, payment of the statutory interest charge could materially and adversely affect us.

From time to time the FASB, and the SEC, who create and interpret appropriate accounting standards, may change the financial accounting and reporting standards or their interpretation and application of these standards that will govern the preparation of our financial statements. These changes could materially and adversely affect our reported financial condition and results of operations. In some cases, we could be required to apply a new or revised standard

The SEC is currently considering whether issuers in the U.S. should be required to prepare financial statements in accordance with IFRS instead of GAAP. IFRS is a comprehensive set of accounting standards promulgated by the IASB, which are rapidly gaining worldwide acceptance. The SEC currently has not finalized the timeframetime frame it expects that U.S. issuers would first report under the new standards. If IFRS is adopted, the potential issues associated with lease accounting, along with other potential changes associated with the adoption or convergence with IFRS, may materially and adversely affect us.

Additionally, the FASB is considering various changes to GAAP, some of which may be significant, as part of a joint effort with the IASB to converge accounting standards. In particular, FASB issued a new accounting standard that requires companies to capitalize all leases on their balance sheets by recognizing a lessee’s rights and obligations. For public companies, this new standard will be effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Many companies that account for certain leases on an “off balance sheet” basis would be required to account for such leases “on balance sheet” upon adoption of this rule. This change removes many of the differences in the way companies account for owned property and leased property, and could have a

material effect on various aspects of our tenants’ businesses, including their credit quality and the factors they consider in deciding whether to own or lease properties. Additionally, it could cause companies that lease properties to prefer shorter lease terms in an effort to reduce the leasing liability required to be recorded on the balance sheet. This new standard could also make lease renewal options less attractive, because, under certain circumstances, the rule would require a tenant to assume that a renewal right will be exercised and accrue a liability relating to the longer lease term.

In the future we may acquire properties or portfolios of properties through tax deferred contribution transactions in exchange for partnership interests in the Operating Partnership, which may result in stockholder dilution. This acquisition structure may have the effect of, among other things, reducing the amount of tax depreciation we could deduct over the tax life of the acquired properties, and may require that we agree to protect the contributors’ ability to defer recognition of taxable gain through restrictions on our ability to dispose of the acquired properties and/or the allocation of partnership debt to the contributors to maintain their tax bases. These restrictions could limit our ability to sell an asset at a time, or on terms, that would be favorable absent such restrictions.

Changes in our leverage ratios may also negatively impact the market price of our equity or debt securities. Furthermore, foreclosures could create taxable income without accompanying cash proceeds, which could hinder our ability to meet the REIT distribution requirements imposed by the Code.

Over the last few years, the credit markets have experienced significant price volatility, displacement and liquidity disruptions, including the bankruptcy, insolvency or restructuring of certain financial institutions. These circumstances have materially impacted liquidity in the financial markets, making financing terms for borrowers less attractive, and in certain cases, have resulted in the unavailability of various types of debt financing. As a result, we may be unable to obtain debt financing on favorable terms or at all or fully refinance maturing indebtedness with new indebtedness. Reductions in our available borrowing capacity or inability to obtain credit when required or when business conditions warrant could materially and adversely affect us.

Furthermore, if prevailing interest rates or other factors at the time of refinancing result in higher interest rates upon refinancing, then the interest expense relating to that refinanced indebtedness would increase. Higher interest rates on newly incurred debt may negatively impact us as well. If interest rates increase, our interest costs and overall costs of capital will increase, which could materially and adversely affect us. Total debt service, including scheduled principal maturities and interest, for 20172018 and 20182019 is $372.7$401.4 million and $795.2$712.2 million, respectively. Debt service for 20172018 also includes $26.6$64.3 million for the acceleration of principal payable following an event of default under 26 separate CMBS loans with stated maturities in 2017.2018.

Some of our financings require us to make a lump-sum or “balloon” payment at maturity. Our ability to make any balloon payment is uncertain and may depend on our ability to obtain additional financing or our ability to sell our properties. At the time the balloon payment is due, we may or may not be able to refinance the balloon payment on terms as favorable as the original loan or sell our properties at a price sufficient to make the balloon payment, if at all. If the balloon payment is refinanced at a higher rate, it will reduce or eliminate any income from our properties. Our inability to meet a balloon payment obligation, through refinancing or sale proceeds, or refinancing on less attractive terms could materially and adversely affect us. We have balloon maturities, excluding debt extendible at our option, of $187.9$189.3 million and $182.8$514.5 million in 20172018 and 2018,2019, respectively, including $26.6$64.3 million on defaulted loans. If we are unable to refinance these maturities or otherwise retire the indebtedness by that time, we could be materially adversely affected, and could be forced to relinquish the related collateral.

The agreements governing our indebtedness contain restrictions and covenants that limit or will limit our ability to operate our business. These covenants, as well as any additional covenants to which we may be subject in the future because of additional indebtedness, could cause us to forgo investment opportunities, reduce or eliminate distributions to our preferred and common stockholders or obtain financing that is more expensive than financing we could obtain if we were not subject to the covenants. In addition, the agreements may have cross default provisions, which provide that a default under one of our financing agreements would lead to a default on some or all of our debt financing agreements.

If an event of default occurs under certain of our CMBS loans, if the master tenants at the properties that secure the CMBS loans fail to maintain certain EBITDAR ratios or if an uncured monetary default exists under the master leases, then a portion of or all of the cash which would otherwise be distributed to us may be restricted by the lenders and unavailable to us until the terms are cured or the debt refinanced. If the financial performance of the collateral for our indebtedness under our Spirit Master Funding Program fails to achieve certain financial performance criteria, cash from such collateral may be unavailable to us until the terms are cured or the debt refinanced. Such cash sweep triggering events have occurred previously and may be ongoing from time to time. The occurrence of these events limit the amount of cash available to us for use in our business and could limit or eliminate our ability to make distributions to our common stockholders.

Additionally, these restrictions may adversely affect our operating and financial flexibility and may limit our ability to respond to changes in our business or competitive environment, all of which may materially and adversely affect us.