Hersha used a combination of cash and $25 million in fixed-rate,first-mortgage financing with an interest rate of 6.25%. Hersha CEOJay H. Shah says the deal is structured at an 8.3% forward caprate. Marriott will continue to manage the property at 4641 KenmoreAve.

"We look forward to growing our management relationship withMarriott over time," Shah also says in the press release. "With theaddition of the Courtyard Alexandria, we have increased ourleverage to the upscale segment of the hotel industry to more thanhalf of the total rooms in our total portfolio."

Neil H. Shah, Hersha president and COO, tells GlobeSt.com thatthe Alexandria acquisition is part of a strategy to invest in highbarrier-to-entry markets, especially in the northeastern US. Inrecent years, the firm has acquired hotels in Boston, New YorkCity, Philadelphia, Hartford and Washington, DC. He says Hershawants to establish a strong cluster of hotels in Washington, DC,New York City and Boston. "We continue to look for opportunitiesthere," he says, adding there is nothing concrete in the pipelineat the moment.