Sofitel sale: Keck Seng Investments, the Hong Kong-listed real estate owner and operator, announced it has acquired the 398-key Sofitel Hotel in New York City, for US$273 million, or approximately US$686,000 per key, from West 44th Street OwnerCo, LLC, according to Avington Financial Ltd. The property will continue to be managed by Sofitel pursuant to a long-term management agreement.
Fairmont St Andrews acquired: Kennedy Wilson Europe has acquired the Fairmont St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland, for £32.4 million (US$54.0 million) from SABD Holding, an affiliate of Fairmont, according to Reuters. The property includes a 209-key hotel and two golf courses. The hotel will continue to be operated by Fairmont.
Bustling U.K.: Savills predicts regional transaction volumes in the U.K. hotel market will reach £2 billion (US$3.3 billion) by year’s end, a 17% increase on the total for 2013, as stock issues in London drive investors to seek opportunities further afield. The regional share of all U.K. hotel transactions so far this year has risen to 59% from 44% during the same period in 2013, according to the international real estate advisor. Savills also highlights that, for the year to date, regional transaction volumes are up 135% on the same period in 2013, accounting for a figure of £1.1 billion (US$1.8 billion).
Building boom? The U.S. construction pipeline continued its upward momentum in Q2 2014, according to Lodging Econometrics, posting a double-digit gain year-over-year (YOY) for the third consecutive quarter. At Q2 2014 the pipeline stood at 3,311 projects/421,387 rooms, an increase of 17% by projects and 20% by rooms YOY. The pipeline has been increasing for the past nine quarters off the bottom established in Q1 2012.
Dow adds DoubleTree: The Dow Hotel Co. has been named manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Philadelphia-Valley Forge. As part of its responsibilities, Dow will oversee an approximately US$1 million upgrade of the hotel’s meeting space and lobby. The hotel also is receiving the finishing touches of a makeover of the exterior façade. All improvements are expected to be completed by next month.
Vienna to Minsk: Vienna International Hotelmanagement AG is taking over a management contract for the Marriott Hotel brand in Minsk, Republic of Belarus. The 220-room high-end property is owned by Falcon Investment Co. and is scheduled to open at the beginning of 2015.
Accor announces U.K. expansion: Accor is adding five hotels to its U.K. portfolio. The 202-room Novotel Brentford will be operated under a lease agreement with Brentford Hotels. It has also announced a new-build Novotel at Canary Wharf in London for 2016 as well as the Mercure London Heathrow, opening in the spring under a franchise agreement with Crimson Hotels. In addition, Ibis Styles are coming to Kensington and Edinburgh.