US Hotel Deal Pace Going Strong

The Hilton Rosemont-Chicago near O’Hare Airport was part of a seven-hotel portfolio bought this year by Hong Kong-based Junson Capital for $800 million. Chinese buyers have been extremely active in the hotel market this year says JLL.

CHICAGO—In the first trimester of 2018, US hotel transaction volumes reached more than $11.9 billion – a 93% increase over last year, according to preliminary figures recently released by Chicago-based JLL. Investors were most interested in South FL and West Coast properties, including ones in Hawaii, resort properties, and portfolios of prime full-service hotels. The company partly attributes the buying spree to an acceleration in performance growth.

“Going into this year, we were hopeful that the improving economy and strong employment trends would translate to an acceleration in RevPAR,” says Arthur Adler, chairman for JLL’s hotels and hospitality group. “Since March, that is exactly what has happened. Investor sentiment has markedly improved based on the widely held belief that demand will outstrip supply for the foreseeable future resulting in stronger pricing power and solid profit improvement.”