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Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

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Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#2
I remember learning that in the 90s some companies had this useless asset: gas pipelines that spanned the country, but had dried up and were not being used.

Other companies had a problem: how to acquire the rights to lay fiber from one end of the country to the other.

Some very smart person realized you could lay the fiber in the old pipes.

Question: what can be done with all that retail space? Is there a new use of space that will come up?

Related question: what are the properties of malls that we might use? (parking, close to residences, easy to walk through)

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#3
In the common conception of markets no seller has enough power to sit on their laurels, they must sell their product in order to survive. It seems wrong to me that in the real estate market liquidity would drop as prices drop. There needs to be a cost associated with holding real estate so that there is turnover in good times and bad times.

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#4

I remember learning that in the 90s some companies had this useless asset: gas pipelines that spanned the country, but had dried up and were not being used. Other companies had a problem: how to acquire the rights to lay fiber from one end of the country to the other. Some very smart person realized you could lay the fiber in the old pipes. Question: what can be done with all that retail space? Is there a new use of…

Exactly, turning them into parking spaces comes to mind in areas where parking is awful. Museums or even a botanical garden. It's hard to feel bad for landlords who throw in the towel before thinking outside the box. I'm sure online retail giants wouldn't mind buying more warehouse space in prime locations either.

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#5

I remember learning that in the 90s some companies had this useless asset: gas pipelines that spanned the country, but had dried up and were not being used. Other companies had a problem: how to acquire the rights to lay fiber from one end of the country to the other. Some very smart person realized you could lay the fiber in the old pipes. Question: what can be done with all that retail space? Is there a new use of…

[deleted]

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#6

I remember learning that in the 90s some companies had this useless asset: gas pipelines that spanned the country, but had dried up and were not being used. Other companies had a problem: how to acquire the rights to lay fiber from one end of the country to the other. Some very smart person realized you could lay the fiber in the old pipes. Question: what can be done with all that retail space? Is there a new use of…

Small commuter apartments and/or mixed space.

[1] https://youtu.be/HmL2l-bcuUQ

[2] https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-mall-of-the-future-will-hav...

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#7

I remember learning that in the 90s some companies had this useless asset: gas pipelines that spanned the country, but had dried up and were not being used. Other companies had a problem: how to acquire the rights to lay fiber from one end of the country to the other. Some very smart person realized you could lay the fiber in the old pipes. Question: what can be done with all that retail space? Is there a new use of…

It could be a whole new flavor for YC or other incubators - don't come to SF and fight to find housing... come to the new Coding Mall - offices are in the East Wing, apartment in the West Wing, demos and sales kiosks in the former Sears, VC offices in the former JC Penney, and everyone meets up in the food court (which is still running, btw, to keep everyone fed) for informal discussions.

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#9

In the common conception of markets no seller has enough power to sit on their laurels, they must sell their product in order to survive. It seems wrong to me that in the real estate market liquidity would drop as prices drop. There needs to be a cost associated with holding real estate so that there is turnover in good times and bad times.

Like property taxes, perhaps? (unfortunately(?), many states do not have them)

Re: Mall landlords struggling to find takers at a price they’ll accept

#10
Stupid ClickBait Headline:

"That’s proving difficult, with just a shallow pool of investors who are willing to take on a declining mall and even fewer who would pay what the landlords want."

How is that practically giving way?

You know what? I'll sell anything you can find in my garage for $2M USD. Anything and all things. Is that pratically giving away?

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