America lost one in six of its neighborhood bars in a single decade, and the killer was real estate math.

America lost one in six of its neighborhood bars in a single decade, and the killer was real estate math.

A bar like this can pour $3 beers because the building was paid off decades ago. The owner often lives upstairs. No rent, no investors, no debt service on a Pabst sign… https://t.co/3XHStLHQQM

— Aakash Gupta (@aakashgupta) September 24, 2026