In 1972, Stephen Ross founded Related Companies, known then as Related Housing Companies. From the beginning, Mr. Ross understood that only an experienced, multi-skilled team of professionals could drive Related to become what it is today – a fully integrated, highly diversified industry leader with expertise in virtually every aspect of development, acquisitions, management, finance, marketing and sales.

During the 1970s, Related took the lead in financing and developing government assisted multi-family housing for long-term investment. It was a unique concept at the time and still is today. Related soon became the leading financier and developer of affordable housing in the country. By the start of 1980, Related rapidly diversified and over the next decade the company expanded the scope of its business and the range of its holdings. New projects included large-scale, market-rate multi-family developments as well as major metropolitan office and commercial properties. The financial services arm of the company grew considerably and became a major provider of debt and equity capital for private and public funds. The 1980s also brought about a name change in recognition of the company's new capabilities and expanded services, and the newly named Related Companies opened offices in Miami and Los Angeles to take advantage of opportunities around the country.

While the real estate market took a downturn in the early 90s, Related began to acquire and reposition many assets, and its expertise was often sought out by owners of distressed properties. Following the downturn, Related led an urban and commercial resurgence, forming new partnerships and completing several mixed-use developments. Related also managed capital on behalf of several large institutions including the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio, GM Pension Fund, MEPT and CalPERS, CreditRE and CertRE. Ventures with Credit-Suisse and Zurich Financial were also formed. In 1998, Related won the coveted bid to develop the prestigious Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle in Manhattan, which became an award-winning icon recognized around the world as a premier urban destination.

At the onset of the 21st century, Related was poised to continue its expansion into new markets and forge new partnerships. In 2006, Related purchased Equinox® Holdings, Inc., further expanding the company’s capabilities into the fitness and lifestyle arena. Shortly thereafter, the company established partnerships with an elite consortium of investors to support the company’s significant growth potential and provide access to vast capital resources, and immediately began pursuing new transformative development projects of sizable scale, diversifying its portfolio and engaging opportunities abroad.

In 2008, Related was selected to develop Hudson Yards, a new 28-acre neighborhood on the west side of New York City, and was tapped by Deutsche Bank to complete construction on the $4 billion Cosmopolitan Development in Las Vegas.

By 2010, the company had launched a fund management platform to administer equity capital on behalf of sovereign wealth funds, public pension plans, multi-managers, endowments, Taft Hartley plans and family offices. Focusing on distressed real estate opportunities, origination and acquisition of construction loans, and multi-family housing opportunities, the platform attracted $1.5 billion in outside investment capital. In 2011, Related bought a partnership stake in Union Square Events – the catering, culture, sports, and events business of Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group; once again creating a valuable synergy with the development, leasing, sales and management of its properties.

In 2014, Related made a strategic investment in CORE, the leading boutique real estate brokerage in Manhattan. Founded in 2005 CORE provides a platform for nearly 100 agents and maintains strong market coverage in both new developments and resales. This affiliation offers Related’s development team additional real time market knowledge and customer insights, and expands the company's capabilities for resales in buildings it has developed in New York City.

Today, Related owns and operates a premier portfolio of high quality assets valued at over $15 billion. With offices in New York, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Abu Dhabi, São Paolo and Shanghai, Related manages an operating portfolio that includes luxury residential, affordable and workforce apartments, commercial, retail and mixed-use developments. Related’s senior management team averages more than 20 years of experience in the industry and over 14 years with Related. The Related team’s experience and the company’s vast capital resources enable the firm to quickly and expertly execute on the most challenging and complex development and financing opportunities around the globe.