W. P. Carey Announces £40 Million Acquisition of UK Government Office Facility

LONDON, Sept. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- W. P. Carey Inc. (NYSE: WPC), a real estate investment trust ("REIT") specializing in corporate sale leaseback financing, build-to-suit construction financing and the acquisition of single-tenant net-lease properties, announced today that it has acquired an office facility of the Department of State for Communities and Local Government ("DCLG"), a department of the UK Government, located in Manchester, UK. The total acquisition cost of the facility was approximately £40 million (€55 million).

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The facility is leased to the DCLG on a 15-year, triple-net lease and is currently occupied by the UK's tax department, Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs ("HMRC"). HMRC has consolidated its staff from several locations into the building, which now accommodates approximately 2,000 employees.

Manchester is the UK's third largest city, with the most active office market outside of London. The facility is located in Salford, situated to the west of the city centre in a key regeneration area. The ongoing redevelopment in the area is expected to increase the attractiveness of the location and have a positive impact on the local real estate market.

Jennifer Lucas, Director of W. P. Carey, said: "The transaction demonstrates W. P. Carey's ability to source and complete attractive deals in key European markets. The UK is the second largest European economy and has a AAA-rating. Together with a Government lessee, we believe we have secured a strong, long-term covenant. The recent staff consolidation into the facility demonstrates that this is an important location for HMRC, and supports our proven business model of acquiring key operating assets let to single tenants on long-term, net-leases."

W. P. Carey Inc.
Celebrating its 40th anniversary, W. P. Carey Inc. is a publicly traded REIT (NYSE: WPC) that provides long-term sale-leaseback and build-to-suit financing for companies worldwide and owns and manages an investment portfolio totaling approximately $15.4 billion. Active in Europe since 1998, European assets comprise approximately $3.6 billion (€2.7 billion) of its global portfolio. The largest owner/manager of net lease assets, WPC's corporate finance-focused credit and real estate underwriting process is a constant that has been successfully leveraged across a wide variety of industries and property types. Its portfolio of long-term leases with creditworthy tenants has an established history of generating stable cash flows that have enabled WPC to deliver consistent and rising dividend income to investors for nearly four decades. www.wpcarey.com

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws. The statements of Ms. Lucas are examples of forward looking statements.A number of factors could cause WPC's actual results, performance or achievement to differ materially from those anticipated. Among those risks, trends and uncertainties are the general economic climate; the supply of and demand for office and industrial properties; interest rate levels; the availability of financing; and other risks associated with the acquisition and ownership of properties, including risks that the tenants will not pay rent, or that costs may be greater than anticipated. For further information on factors that could impact WPC, reference is made to WPC's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.