CORONAVIRUS
281 | Rescue Capital: Hotel financiers seek opportunities to invest in distressed assets
CORONAVIRUS
In June, Watermark Lodging Trust, a Chicago REIT, sold its Hutton Hotel in Nashville for $70 million. The price is $7 million less than what the REIT said it paid to acquire and upgrade the hotel seven years ago.
A month later, Watermark said it signed a deal in which it sold shares worth $200 million to a joint venture between Ascendant Capital Partners and Oaktree Capital Management.
The influx of cash will be used to keep Watermark in business and give Ascendant and Oaktree preferred equity positions. Watermark will pay the JV a 12 percent annual dividend rate.
The activity is a harbinger of what’s to come as hotel owners struggling to stay afloat amid the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic may soon be forced to sell their assets at a discount or borrow money to keep paying their mortgages.
In this episode of Lodging Leaders podcast, we explore what opportunistic investors might have in store as the lodging industry faces the possibility of mortgage defaults.
We talk to financiers who are stepping up with what they call “rescue capital” to help owners get to the other side with their businesses intact or be among the first to reap a return if an asset is forced to go to market. And we talk to asset managers who advise on how to position your hotel to either survive the crisis or go to market.
Our report features Amanda Chivers, managing principal at Crown Hospitality Consulting in Atlanta; Evens Charles, president and CEO of Frontier Development & Hospitality Group in Washington, D.C.; David Turley, principal at Cronheim Hotel Capital in New York City; and Brian Waldman, executive vice president of investments at Peachtree Hotel Group in Atlanta.
READ: Click here to view the expanded multimedia report for this episode.
Resources and Links
- 278 | CMBS Distress: Thousands of hotel owners seek relief from billions of dollars in debt
- Daniel Lesser’s full presentation
- Amanda Chivers of Crown Hospitality Consulting
- Evens Charles of Frontier Development & Hospitality Group
- David Turley of Cronheim Hotel Capital
- Brian Waldman of Peachtree Hotel Group
CORONAVIRUS
-
341 | One Big Happy: Travel survey reveals how hotels can attract families
Rainer Jenss of Nyack, New York, founded the Family Travel Association seven years ago to help parents and caregivers introduce children to the world through travel, whether that’s a yearlong trip around the world that Jenss and his family took or a weekend getaway to a nearby destination. To help the travel industry gauge what parents want when they take their kids on vacation, FTA conducts an annual study. The U.S. Family Travel Survey 2021 reveals the shift in mindset the COVID-19 pandemic has created in families planning a trip over the next 12 months. Hoteliers use can use the information to generate business and boost their strategies to recover and sustain business now and other the coming months.
-
340 | New Glass Ceiling: Industry leaders work to shatter barriers for women hotel owners and investors
Whether they’re new to the concept or they’ve worked in lodging for years, women are an emerging force in hotel development, investment and ownership. Several industry leaders are making significant strides in building programs that encourage and support women interested in becoming hotel owners and investors. This report examines new projects and updates the status of existing efforts by industry leaders to recruit women as owners and help them hurdle barriers such as critical access to capital.