The 25-year-old hotel at 5353 Westheimer Rd. boasts an average daily room rate and occupancy well above the submarket's averages of $126 per and 69.8%, respectively, according to Jeffrey Davis, a senior vice president for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels in New York City. He says the numbers plus the location in the Galleria submarket attracted a variety of potential investors, including well-capitalized owner-operators.
"They'd owned it for some time and I think they ultimately came to the conclusion that investors are bullish on Houston's prospects," says Alan Tantleff, a JLL executive vice president, who teamed with Davis to represent the seller. "We received a very favorable response to this property because investors are upbeat about Houston."
Tantleff tells GlobeSt.com that Westmont received the nod to purchase the 26-story hotel partly because it is a local company. "This was probably a strategic acquisition for them," he continues. "Their office is two blocks away."
Another plus the seller brought to the table was certainty of closing. "We felt they had a strategy that was executable," Davis says, "and the timing was such that we felt comfortable they could do it."
Davis adds that Westmont ended up with a strong piece of real estate in an active submarket. "The lack of supply coming on-line in Houston has allowed the industry to stabilize," he explains. "People who previously wouldn't have looked at Houston are starting to see it as an ideal lodging acquisition market."
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.