ORGANIZATION - Narrative (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020 state subsidiary unitholder shares	Dec. 31, 2019 unitholder shares	Dec. 31, 2018 unitholder shares
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Number of states in which entity operates | state	24
Number of wholly owned subsidiaries | subsidiary	36
Number of holders of common units who received cash for their units (unitholder) | unitholder		1	2
Redeemable noncontrolling interest, units exercised for conversion (shares)		72,592	526,510
Operating Partnership
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Redeemable noncontrolling interest, shares issued upon exercise of common units (shares)	20,956,110	611,847	915,338
Number of holders of common units who received cash for their units (unitholder) | unitholder	31	2	1
Redeemable noncontrolling interest, units exercised for conversion (shares)	20,956,110	611,847	915,338
Consolidated Properties
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Non-controlling limited partner interest ownership of CBL's Predecessor in the Operating Partnership (as a percent)	2.50%
Common stock owned by CBL's Predecessor (shares)	20,100,000
Interest of CBL's Predecessor in Operating Partnership (as a percent)	10.20%
Consolidated Properties | CBL Holdings
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Ownership interest in qualified subsidiaries (as a percent)	100.00%
CBL & Associates Limited Partnership
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Number of wholly owned subsidiaries | subsidiary	2
Combined ownership by the subsidiaries in operating partnership (as a percent)	97.50%
CBL & Associates Limited Partnership | CBL Associates Properties Inc
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Effects of Changes, Net [Line Items]
Ownership of the sole general partner in partnership (as a percent)	1.00%
Limited partnership interest owned by CBL Holdings II, Inc. in the operating partnership (as a percent)	96.50%