URW Set to Close $925M Refi of High-End Westfield Century City

Two years after closing one of the nation’s largest commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) deals of 2023, European mall giant Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield is running it back. 

URW is close to refinancing the Westfield Century City mall — a 1.4 million-square-foot shopping center, and a Los Angeles institution along Santa Monica Boulevard — with a $925 million CMBS package, according to a report by Fitch Ratings. The new five-year deal is expected to close July 22. 

Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Santander Bank and a Deutsche Bank affiliate are expected to co-originate the debt, per Fitch. URW plans to use the funds (along with additional cash equity) to replace a similar $925 million CMBS package originated by Morgan Stanley in 2023, and pay closing costs. The property currently has no other debt, a URW spokesperson told CO.

URW purchased the complex, often cited as one of the best-performing malls in the country, in 2002 for $165 million. The landlord has spent considerable time and resources upgrading it since then, completing a $1 billion renovation in 2017.

An appraisal by Newmark in May valued the 1964-built property at $2.04 billion, representing a loan-to-value ratio of 45.3 percent. The mall’s occupancy rate is also exceptionally good for a retail plaza of its size, at 95.6 percent leased to more than 250 tenants. Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and nordstrom anchor the property, which also features an AMC movie theater and Gelson’s grocery store. 

Representatives for Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley declined to comment, while representatives for Santander and Deutsche Bank did not immediately respond to requests for comment. 

The mega-deal extends Paris-based URW’s plan to focus on a thinner portfolio of mostly trophy assets in the U.S. after selling off big chunks of its multibillion-dollar holdings by the end of 2023 due to poor financials, pressure from the pandemic and other challenges. 

URW did indeed trade in several large properties at the time, particularly in California: It sold the Westfield Santa Anita in 2022 for $537.5 million; The Village in L.A.’s San Fernando Valley for $325 million in 2023; and the Westfield Mission Valley in San Diego for $290 million, also in 2023, to name a few.

“We have made the strategic decision to retain our high-performing flagship assets in the U.S., which will deliver further growth and value creation,” Jean-Marie Tritant, URW’s CEO, said in a statement alongside URW’s fourth-quarter 2024 earnings report.

Cathy Cunningham contributed to this report. She can be reached at ccunningham@commercialobserver.com. Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.