Frequently Asked Questions

Postal Realty Trust is an internally managed real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and manages properties leased primarily to the United States Postal Service, ranging from last mile post offices to larger industrial facilities.

REIT stands for real estate investment trust. REITs are investment vehicles that allow investors to pool capital to invest in real estate assets. Unlike regular corporations, REITs typically don’t need to pay federal corporate income tax, eliminating “double taxation” (taxed at both the corporate and stockholder levels). A company that qualifies as a REIT generally is permitted to deduct dividends paid to stockholders from its taxable income, which reduces the amount of federal corporate-level tax the REIT is required to pay. As a result, and to comply with certain distribution requirements applicable to REITs, most REITs distribute at least 100% of their taxable income to stockholders and, therefore, do not pay federal corporate-level taxes in most circumstances. Most states follow this federal tax treatment and allow REITs to deduct dividends paid to stockholders from their taxable income for state tax purposes. Certain REIT subsidiaries, however, are fully subject to federal and state corporate-level income taxes.

Postal Realty Trust is a type of REIT called an UPREIT. UPREIT stands for Umbrella Partnership REIT. Postal Realty Trust is a holding company that owns operating partnership (OP) units. OP units are units of ownership of the operating partnership that owns all the properties. Postal Realty Trust is the sole general partner of the operating partnership that owns the properties.

As an UPREIT, Postal Realty Trust may be able to acquire properties on a tax-deferred basis. Instead of selling for cash, if a property owner decides to contribute their property to the operating partnership in exchange for OP units, the property owner may be able to defer the recognition of taxable income on any gains that would normally be incurred with the property sale. Learn more about the benefits of OP units in the Operating Partnership Units section below.

Postal Realty Trust was founded in 2004 as Nationwide Postal Management, Inc. by Chief Executive Officer Andrew Spodek. In November 2018, the company formed as a Maryland corporation and changed its name to Postal Realty Trust, Inc. The company commenced trading of its Class A common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker PSTL on May 15, 2019.

Postal Realty Trust’s objective is to create stockholder value by generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through the expansion of its portfolio of owned postal properties leased primarily to the United States Postal Service. Learn more.

Postal Realty Trust’s Class A common stock is listed and traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PSTL. It can be bought or sold through a stockbroker, bank or financial institution that offers brokerage services. Postal Realty Trust does not currently have a direct stock purchase plan.

No, voting equivalency shares are owned by certain members of management and cannot be purchased or sold by individuals.

Yes, Postal Realty Trust currently pays a quarterly dividend on its common stock. Click here to review the dividend history.

At this time, Postal Realty Trust does not have a dividend reinvestment plan.

Dividends are generally taxable in the year in which they are declared by Postal Realty Trust. Following the end of each year Postal Realty Trust will provide US-based investors a Form 1099-DIV, and in relation to non-US investors a Form 1042-S. A tax status letter will be provided to shareholders that describes the taxability of the dividends paid in the preceding year, including a breakdown between ordinary and capital gain dividends. For information about taxes in respect to dividends received by an investor, investors should consult with their own tax advisors.

Please visit Postal Realty Trust’s Email Notification page to sign up for email alerts under any of the following sections of the investor relations website: SEC Filings, Presentations and Events, and News.

You can request information by contacting Investor Relations at ir@postalrealtytrust.com or 516.232.8900.

Postal Realty Trust’s auditor is Deloitte & Touche LLP.

Instead of selling for cash, a property owner can contribute their property to the operating partnership in exchange for OP units, which may defer the recognition of taxable income on any gains that would normally be incurred with the property sale. Pursuant to the terms of the operating partnership’s partnership agreement, the property owner, at any time after an initial holding period, can request for the redemption of their units for (at Postal Realty Trust’s discretion) either shares of Postal Realty Trust’s Class A common stock or cash. The redemption for shares or cash is a taxable transaction.

An OP unit transaction could be considered if a property owner is looking to: (a) defer capital gains tax upon the sale of a property; (b) be free from property management responsibilities; (c) diversify ownership interest across a larger portfolio of properties; or (d) facilitate estate planning. In addition, an OP unit transaction may make sense for the following categories of property owners:

• Families in need of succession planning
• Partnerships that may need to be dissolved
• Long-term owners with a low tax basis in their properties
• Owners interested in diversifying their holdings, either across additional properties or outside of real estate altogether

• Deferred Taxable Income—Property owners may be able to defer their capital gains tax until (i) Postal Realty Trust sells the property, (ii) the OP units are exchanged for common stock (or cash), or (iii) in certain cases, the operating partnership reduces the debt on the property.
• Income from Distributions—Holders of OP units are entitled to cash distributions equal to the per-share dividends on Postal Realty Trust’s common stock. In addition, as Postal Realty Trust grows its portfolio, it will potentially increase its dividend/distribution to common stock and OP unitholders.
• Estate and Tax Planning—Subject to the terms of the operating partnership’s partnership agreement and federal securities laws, OP units can be conveyed to heirs before or after death. When OP units are transferred through inheritance, under current law, the heir’s tax basis will be “stepped up” to fair market value at the time of the contributor’s death, potentially reducing future capital gains tax. Heirs can choose to exchange OP units for common stock (or cash, at Postal Realty Trust’s option) on their own timetable. The ability of the OP unit holder to control the timing of the exchange can also allow the holder to spread out the impact of future capital gains tax by exchanging the OP units for common stock in smaller increments over time.
• Relief from Property Management Responsibilities—By contributing properties in exchange for OP units, property owners can continue to receive regular cash distributions without having the responsibilities of property management.
• Diversification—Property owners who contribute their property in exchange for OP units will have partial ownership in a larger, geographically diverse portfolio and reduce the risks associated with owning a single property or a smaller group of properties.
• Potential for Share Price Appreciation—As Postal Realty Trust grows its portfolio and cash flow, its common stock and OP units have the opportunity for increases in value. Of course, the value could also decrease, depending on Postal Realty Trust’s operations and market conditions.

Depending on the particular circumstances of the property contributor, the capital gains tax may be deferred as long as the operating partnership holds the property and the OP unitholder holds the OP units. Capital gains taxes become due when: (a) the OP unitholder chooses to exchange the OP units for common stock (or cash, at Postal Realty Trust’s option); (b) the contributed property is sold by the operating partnership; or (c) in some cases, the operating partnership reduces the debt on the property.

If the OP units are still owned at the time of the OP unitholder’s death‚ under current law, there would be a step-up in basis, eliminating any taxable gain in the OP units that may have existed prior to death.

Also, it is important to note that OP units can be converted over time, at the OP unitholder’s election, to spread out and lessen the tax impact in smaller increments.

OP unitholders receive cash distributions per unit equal to the cash dividends paid per share on common stock of Postal Realty Trust.

Economically‚ OP units generally are the same as shares of common stock of Postal Realty Trust. OP units generally can be exchanged on a one-for-one basis with common stock of Postal Realty Trust, so the common stock essentially determines the value of OP units.

Unlike shareholders, OP unitholders do not have voting rights as shareholders of Postal Realty Trust because OP unitholders are not owners of Postal Realty Trust.

OP units are taxed differently than common stock of Postal Realty Trust for income tax purposes (for instance, OP unitholders earn a portion of the total income from each state in which the operating partnership owns properties, whereas income of Postal Realty Trust shareholders is taxed only in the shareholder’s state of residency, in addition to other differences).

OP units can be exchanged on a one-for-one basis with common stock of Postal Realty Trust, so the market price of the common stock essentially determines the value of OP units. The current price of common stock for a publicly traded REIT at any time is determined by the market.

In certain cases, OP units may be pledged as collateral to a lender‚ achieving additional liquidity while maintaining tax deferral benefits.