Spinoso Real Estate Buys 1.2M-SF Mall in Baltimore for $190M
White Marsh Mall had been under Spinoso’s receivership since last year
By Nick Trombola November 27, 2024 12:55 pm
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A 1.2 million-square-foot mall in the Baltimore suburbs has a new lease on life following its purchase, and just in time for Black Friday no less.
The majority of White Marsh Mall, at 8200 Perry Hall Boulevard just off Interstate 95 on the northeastern outskirts of Charm City, was acquired by its court-appointed receiver, Spinoso Real Estate Group, for $190 million, according to the Business Journals. New York-based Spinoso was appointed to manage and operate the mall last year due to persistent financial problems.
Brookfield Properties had owned White Marsh since 2018 when it acquired GGP, which previously operated the mall. But by that time, debt woes tied to the property had already been mounting.
Since 2013, the mall has been financed through two commercial mortgage-backed securities loans with original maturity dates of late spring 2021. The maturity dates of the loans were pushed to May 2027 before the sale of the mall to Spinoso, though outstanding debt on the two loans still stands at $108.2 million and $78.7 million, according to the Business Journals.
A spokesperson for Brookfield declined to comment, while representatives for Spinoso did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
White Marsh’s new ownership, and recent trends in regards to physical shopping, are encouraging signs for the 43-year-old mall.
Malls nationwide this past Labor Day weekend saw a 56 percent jump in pedestrian traffic compared to Labor Day weekend of 2019, according to a September report from MRI Software. That’s a good omen for this upcoming Black Friday, as indoor shopping malls experienced a nearly 300 percent boost in sales on the notorious shopping day in 2023 compared to an average day that same year, per Mastercard Spending and Pacer.ai.
Still, thousands of brick-and-mortar stores have closed this year as retailers struggle to compensate for new online buying habits and higher prices. As of early November, store closures in the U.S. had risen 60 percent year-over-year, marking its highest levels since 2020 during the throes of the pandemic, according to Coresight Research.
Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.
