Aussies, Colonial Buy 4M SF of Mall Space

MOBILE, AL-The 1.33-million-sf Colonial Mall Bel-Air here and five other Southeast regional malls totaling 3.74 million sf are under new ownership today. A joint venture partnership of Sydney, Australia-based General Properties Trust and Babcock & Brown, along with Birmingham-based Colonial Properties Trust have purchased the assets after acquiring a loan for $320 million. Colonial Properties previously owned the assets.

Countrywide Commercial Real Estate Finance of Calabasas, CA financed the acquisition but a company representative declined to disclose the purchase price. However, retail investment brokers in the six markets tell GlobeSt.com the estimated total purchase price is in the $400 million-plus range or about $106.95 per sf. At $106 per sf, replacement cost would still be below the average estimated hard construction costs today of about $150 per sf for comparable properties, construction sources in the Southeast tell GlobeSt.com.

Besides the 130-store Colonial Mall Bel-Air, the other acquisitions are the 525,000-sf, 62-store Colonial Mall Myrtle Beach in Myrtle Beach, SC; the, 525,000-sf Colonial University Village in Auburn, AL; the 507,000-sf, 60-store Colonial Mall Glynn Place in Brunswick, GA; the 450,000-sfl, 65-store Colonial Mall Greenville in Greenville, NC; and the 400,000-sf, 65-store Colonial Mall Valdosta in Valdosta, GA.