NEW YORK CITY-The $140-million sale of two Morgans Hotel Group properties, first reported in early April, has closed, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels said Monday. FelCor Lodging Trust is making its debut in the Manhattan market with the acquisition of the 114-key Morgans at 237 Madison Ave. and the 168-key Royalton at 44 W. 44th St.

In a release, JLLH EVP Jeffrey Davis calls the deal “a win-win” for buyer and seller. “Morgans Hotel Group has secured a long-term management agreement with an institutional owner, which aligns with its long-term strategic plan, while FelCor has acquired two of New York’s most coveted boutique hotels, establishing a solid presence in the New York market,” Davis says. Davis and VP Gilda Perez-Alvarado led the JLLH team on the transaction, representing Morgans.

Arthur Adler, managing director and Americas CEO at JLLH, points out in the release that 2011 thus far has seen “a staggering 250% increase” in dollar volume for upscale, full-service lodging properties changing hands in major markets. He adds that Manhattan is “on the forefront of hotel transactions, with year-to-date sales in the city topping $1 billion, representing a quarter of national upscale urban hotel trade volumes.” Helping drive that, Perez-Alvarado says in the release, was one of the highest RevPAR increases of any US market in 2010.

When the sale to Felcor was first announced, industry consultant Daniel Lesser told GlobeSt.com that the deal demonstrated FelCor’s evolution over time. Additionally, the Irving, TX-based lodging REIT’s two Midtown buys, and its $98.5-million acquisition of the Fairmont Copley Plaza in Boston this past August, showed that “smart hotel investors see tremendous upside in this product type and in these market types,” said Lesser, founder of locally based LW Hospitality Advisors.