Chicago Real Estate Daily highlighted an interesting nugget revealed during General Growth’s fourth quarter earnings call–that the firm is intending to slim down even more. General Growth owned 216 malls before its restructuring that resulted in a split into two different entities.
The main entity today owns 169 malls, but it will scale back even further:
Sandeep Mathrani, who has been the CEO of the No. 2 U.S. mall owner for about 40 days, said Tuesday that he expects to reduce the number of malls the company owns to 150 from its current 169. It plans to sell the 19 other malls, which contribute a minimal amount to its income.
Given that it’s moving its weakest properties, this probably won’t make for a massive deal. It will be interesting to see who steps up. Will a rival REIT with a lower-grade portfolio make a move here? Or will we see private money go after the assets?
