NEW YORK CITY-Fifty-two percent of American investors surveyedhave clear intentions to buy in the hospitality sector over thenext six months, while the percentage of investors who plan tomaintain their existing portfolios at present levels has declinedby 13%. This provides a clear indication that transaction volumewill pick up in the first half of 2011, at least in the Americas,says Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels in a report on its biannual HotelInvestor Sentiment Survey.

“After protracted dislocation and losses, transaction activityin the hotel real estate sector is regaining vigor,” says ArthurAdler, New York City-based managing director and Americas CEO forJLLH, in a release. “Now that operating fundamentals have clearlyturned the corner, buyers are becoming increasingly aggressive asthey seek to establish a foothold at historically low purchaseprices.”

Gregory Rumpel, Miami-based EVP with JLLH, tells GlobeSt.comthat the numbers on investors’ sentiment are borne out by recentactivity. “The third quarter’s been very good for us in terms oftransaction volume, certainly in the US,” he says. “The sentimentis a leading indicator, but it’s very quickly being followed up byreal-time transactions.”