Colonial will continue to lease and manage the centers. The malls Colonial sold are: the 487,258-sf Colonial Mall Myrtle Beach (SC); the 507,195-sf Colonial Mall Greenville (NC); the 1.3-million-sf Colonial Mall Bel Air in Mobile, AL; the 400,000-sf Colonial Mall Valdosta (GA); the 509,736-sf Colonial Mall Glynn Place in Brunswick, GA; and the 548,000-sf Colonial University Village in Auburn, AL. Anchors include Bass Pro Shops, J.C. Penney and Sears.

The deal, brokered by New York City-based Granite Partners, fits with Colonial's retail strategy of focusing on open-air centers instead of malls. In the summer, the company sold two centers, Colonial Mall Macon (GA) and Colonial Mall Burlington (NC), to the Lakewood, NJ-based Lightstone Group for $170 million.

The company also owns or manages 48,100 apartment units and 20.2 million feet of office space. Earlier this year Colonial was part of the $1.8-billion acquisition of Boca Raton, FL-based office owner CRT.