10. Noncontrolling Interests

In January 2013, we completed our acquisition of ARCT. Equity issued as consideration for this transaction included common and preferred partnership units issued by Tau Operating Partnership, L.P., or Tau Operating Partnership, the consolidated subsidiary which owns properties acquired through the ARCT acquisition. We and our subsidiaries hold a 99.4% interest in Tau Operating Partnership, and consolidate the entity.

In June 2013, we completed the acquisition of a portfolio of properties by issuing common partnership units in Realty Income, L.P. The units were issued as consideration for the acquisition. At December 31, 2016, the remaining units from this issuance represent a 0.4% ownership in Realty Income, L.P. We hold the remaining 99.6% interests in this entity and consolidate the entity.

Neither of the common partnership units have voting rights. Both common partnership units are entitled to monthly distributions equal to the amount paid to common stockholders of Realty Income, and are redeemable in cash or Realty Income common stock, at our option, and at a conversion ratio of one to one, subject to certain exceptions. Noncontrolling interests with redemption provisions that permit the issuer to settle in either cash or common stock, at the option of the issuer, were evaluated to determine whether temporary or permanent equity classification on the balance sheet was appropriate. We determined that the units meet the requirements to qualify for presentation as permanent equity.

In 2016, we completed the acquisition of two properties by acquiring a controlling interest in two separate joint ventures. We are the managing member of each of these joint ventures, and possess the ability to control the business and manage the affairs of these entities. At December 31, 2016, we and our subsidiaries held 90.5% and 74% interests, and fully consolidated these entities in our consolidated financial statements.

The following table represents the change in the carrying value of all noncontrolling interests through December 31, 2016 (dollars in thousands):

	Tau Operating				Realty Income, L.P.				Other Noncontrolling
	Partnership units(1)				units(2)				Interests						Total
Carrying value at December 31, 2015	$		13,410		$		8,327		$	-					$	21,737
Reallocation of equity	491				52				-						543
Redemptions	-				(6,161			)	-						(6,161		)
Contributions	-				-				15,906						15,906
Distributions	(762			)	(459			)	(11,461					)	(12,682		)
Allocation of net income	266				457				183						906
Carrying value at December 31, 2016	$		13,405		$		2,216		4,628						$	20,249


	Tau Operating				Realty Income, L.P.
	Partnership units(1)				units(2)						Total
Carrying value at December 31, 2014	$	13,067			$	14,631					$	27,698
Reallocation of equity	836				(1,887			)			(1,051		)
Redemptions	-				(4,347			)			(4,347		)
Distributions	(722			)	(930			)			(1,652		)
Allocation of net income	229				860						1,089
Carrying value at December 31, 2015	$	13,410			$	8,327					$	21,737

⁽¹⁾ 317,022 Tau Operating Partnership units were issued on January 22, 2013 and remained outstanding as of December 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015.

⁽²⁾ 534,546 Realty Income, L.P. units were issued on June 27, 2013, 331,364 units were outstanding as of December 31, 2015, and 88,182 remain outstanding as of December 31, 2016.

The Tau Operating Partnership preferred units were recorded at fair value as of the date of acquisition. Since they were redeemable at a fixed price on a determinable date, we initially classified them in other liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. Payments on these preferred units were made monthly at a rate of 2% per annum and were included in interest expense. In January 2015, we redeemed all 6,750 Tau Operating Partnership preferred units for $1,000 per unit, plus accrued and unpaid distributions.

During the first quarter of 2016, we adopted ASU 2015-02, which amends Topic 810, Consolidation. This ASU amended the criteria used to evaluate whether an entity is a variable interest entity, or VIE, resulting in the conclusion that all limited partnerships are considered VIEs, unless substantive kick-out rights or participating rights exist. Accordingly, we determined that both Tau Operating Partnership and Realty Income, L.P. are VIEs. We have also concluded that we are the primary beneficiary of these VIEs, based on our controlling financial interests. We evaluated the minority unitholder rights noting that they do not hold substantive kick-out rights or participating rights. These conclusions did not result in changes to our historical accounting for these partnerships. Below is a summary of selected financial data of consolidated VIEs, including the joint ventures acquired during 2016, for which we are the primary beneficiary included in the consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2016 and 2015 (in thousands):

	2016		2015
Net real estate	$	3,040,903	$	3,082,025
Total assets	3,499,481		3,586,239
Total debt	251,047		393,812
Total liabilities	364,797		511,476