“Strong leasing was the highlight of our second quarter results as the CBL team successfully leveraged healthy tenant demand for our portfolio. Leasing metrics were the strongest in several years, with healthy positive new and renewal lease spreads and year-over-year occupancy growth, providing solid evidence of the constructive environment. We intend to take advantage of the more favorable supply/demand dynamic in our leasing negotiations going forward. Second quarter same-center NOI was near the high-end of our full-year guidance range. As a result of the year-to-date performance and our expectations for the remainder of the year, we raised the low-end of our FFO, as adjusted and same-center NOI guidance ranges. Leasing-led revenue gains were offset by an expected reduction in percentage rent. We successfully managed inflationary pressure on costs, generating a modest reduction in operating expense for the quarter on a same-center basis. We are also making progress addressing our loan maturities and de-risking our balance sheet. During the quarter, we closed a two-year extension on the loan secured by Cross Creek Mall and are currently in process on the refinancing of the loan secured by The Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta. While the financing markets remain challenging, we are encouraged by the reception we are seeing in the market. As we move into the second half of 2023, we remain focused on achieving further operational improvement, generating greater free cash flow and maintaining a disciplined approach to capital allocation,” said CEO Stephen Lebovitz.
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