You Probably Own This 7-Eleven (and That's Why It Looks So Sad)

The Williamsburg, Virginia 7-Eleven sits on land owned by Agree Realty Corporation, a real-estate investment trust that holds nearly 3,000 retail properties nationwide and is about one-eighth owned by Vanguard, meaning many retirement-plan investors likely own a share. The article argues that such distant, commodity-focused ownership—enabled by regulations and tax laws—creates interchangeable, uninspired sites and erodes neighborhood character because owners are detached from the communities they profit from.