Buyers Plot Value-Add Play on Ex-Colony Marriott Portfolio
By Keith Loria August 21, 2019 3:58 pm
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A joint venture between EMA Lodging Group and Flynn Properties is outlining plans for renovations on a five-property portfolio of Courtyard by Marriott hotels in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and San Antonio that it recently acquired from Colony Capital, according to an executive at EMA.
The five hotels, totaling 731 rooms, have all been institutionally owned and Marriott-operated over the last decade, according to JLL (JLL), which represented the seller in the transaction.
“This was an institutionally owned and maintained portfolio of hotels located in top 25 markets with multiple demand generators,” Andy Welch, EMA Lodging Group’s founder and principal, told Commercial Observer. “The hotels are losing market share due to their condition and are in need of renovation. We feel operations can be improved through EMA Lodging’s asset management approach.”
Acore Capital lent $41 million to help with the purchase and update of the properties, as CO reported. The transaction marks Flynn Properties’ entry into the select-service hotel market.
Two of the hotels involved in the transaction are located in suburban Washington, D.C. — Courtyard New Carrollton Landover, located at 8330 Corporate Drive in Landover, Md., and Courtyard Fairfax Fair Oaks, situated at 11220 Lee Jackson Memorial Highway in Fairfax, Va.
The portfolio also includes Courtyard San Antonio Airport and Courtyard San Antonio Medical Center, both in San Antonio, Texas; and Courtyard Baltimore Hunt Valley in Hunt Valley, Md.
EMA Lodging is planning comprehensive renovations to each property and will incorporate the latest Courtyard by Marriott design package, according to Welch. The renovation program will include guest rooms, bathrooms (tub and shower conversions), exercise rooms, meeting rooms, the lobby, and exterior façade.
According to Welch, EMA Lodging looks for value-add opportunities — both capital and operations — in top markets with multiple demand generators, so this deal made a lot of sense.
“We like both the D.C. and San Antonio markets and their attractive demand characteristics,” he said, adding the company likes owning multiple hotels in the same market.
