General Growth reorganizes 24 more mall

Shopping Mall owner General Growth Properties Inc. confirmed reorganization plans on March 26 for 24 more properties with $1.5 billion in debt.

It was the seventh group of confirmations since December. Property-level companies with about $1 billion in debt remain to be reorganized. General Growth told the bankruptcy judge at the March 26 hearing that it expects to file papers this week selecting financing parties to underpin the reorganization of $6.5 billion of debt at the holding company level.

General Growth tentatively has $2.625 billion from Brookfield Asset Management Inc. to be invested in return for 30 percent of the new stock. Fairholme Capital Management, LLC and Pershing Square Capital Management LP have offered to provide another $3.925 billion in new equity capital.

General Growth began the largest real estate reorganization in history by filing under Chapter 11 in April. The books of Chicago-based General Growth had assets of $29.6 billion and total liabilities of $27.3 billion as of Dec. 31, 2008.

It owns or manages more than 200 shopping-mall properties. The case is In re General Growth Properties Inc., 09-11977, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).