Our History
W. P. Carey Founder Wm. Polk Carey was a born entrepreneur. As a child he sold soda to his neighbors and writing ink that he made in his basement. When he arrived at Princeton University to begin his freshman year, he soon discovered he owned something many of his schoolmates did not – a small dorm room refrigerator. Seeing an opportunity, he purchased as many refrigerators as he could afford and leased them to his schoolmates for a small fee. By the end of his sophomore year, he had made over $10,000. It was this simple idea that laid the groundwork for what is now known as W. P. Carey Inc.
Our History
W. P. Carey Founder Wm. Polk Carey was a born entrepreneur. As a child he sold soda to his neighbors and writing ink that he made in his basement. When he arrived at Princeton University to begin his freshman year, he soon discovered he owned something many of his schoolmates did not – a small dorm room refrigerator. Seeing an opportunity, he purchased as many refrigerators as he could afford and leased them to his schoolmates for a small fee. By the end of his sophomore year, he had made over $10,000. It was this simple idea that laid the groundwork for what is now known as W. P. Carey Inc.
50 years of Investing for the Long Run®
50 years of Investing for the Long Run®
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1973
Wm. Polk Carey founds W. P. Carey (formerly W. P. Carey & Co.), pioneering the concept of pooled net leased commercial real estate assets for individual investors
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1979
W. P. Carey launches its series of investment programs (CPA®) to continue providing retail investors with income and wealth preservation through the acquisition of commercial properties and real estate-related assets.*
*In 2017, W. P. Carey announced plans to exit all non-traded retail fundraising activity as part of its evolution to a pure-play net lease REIT.
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1998
W. P. Carey (formerly Carey Diversified LLC) begins trading on the NYSE
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1999
W. P. Carey expands to Europe with the launch of its London office
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2008
W. P. Carey grows its European footprint, opening its Amsterdam office
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2012
W. P. Carey converts to a REIT
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2014
W. P. Carey completes its inaugural public equity and U.S. bond offerings and receives investment grade ratings from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s
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2015
W. P. Carey expands its access to public markets with its inaugural eurobond offering
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2018
W. P. Carey celebrates 45 years of Investing for the Long Run®, 20 years as a publicly traded company on the NYSE and 20 years of investing in Europe.
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2020
W. P. Carey successfully navigates a year unlike any other amid the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining rent collections among the best in the net lease sector as well as REITs generally
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2021
W. P. Carey executes its inaugural green bond offering
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2022
W. P. Carey completes its merger with its final CPA® investment program and receives ratings upgrade from Moody’s, affirming it sustained positive trajectory since its initial investment grade rating from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s in 2014
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2023
W. P. Carey celebrates 50 years of Investing for the Long Run®, 25 years as a publicly traded company on the NYSE and 25 years of investing in Europe.