Latest HITs: Noble buys 10 Woodsprings; Oaktree, Trinity refi; Asia Pac deal trends

Noble grows extended-stay portfolio. Noble Investment Group has acquired 10 Woodsrping Suites in the southeastern U.S. and plans to make physical improvements across the portfolio to enhance market positioning and accelerate performance. The portfolio is located in markets throughout Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky, characterized by positive net migration, job growth, and wage growth. The group said it is responding to demographic shifts and opportunities related to relocations, traveling health professionals and infrastructure project-related businesses. “Noble has acquired 48 hotels over the past two years, and we continue to add substantial scale to our extended-stay travel and hospitality platform," said Ben Brunt, Noble's managing principal and chief investment officer.

Oaktree, Trinity refi in Hawaii. Funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. and Trinity Investments have arranged a $515 million refinancing of the existing $360 million loan for the 771-key Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Kaʻanapali. The refinancing follows the completion of Oaktree and Trinity’s close to $120 million renovation and repositioning plan for the resort. Eastdil Secured brokered the transaction. A joint venture among Oaktree and Trinity acquired the resort in 2017. “The resort’s strong performance following the completion of its renovation has generated interest among lenders, and we are pleased with the outcome of this refinancing in a challenging capital markets environment,” said Taejo Kim, managing director of Oaktree’s Real Estate Group.

Paceline adds 9^th hotel. Affiliates of Paceline Equity Partners, a Dallas-based private equity manager, have acquired the 304-room Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West Hotel, located in the $2 billion Legacy West mixed-use development in Dallas, Texas. The acquisition will be Paceline’s first strategic partnership with ESR Group, one of the largest real estate managers in Asia with more than $140 billion in assets under management. The property was developed in 2017 in conjunction with the completion of Legacy West. “We love the assumable, fixed-rate financing embedded in this transaction which allows us to hold debt in place at significantly better terms than those currently available in the market,” said Leigh Sansone, CIO of Paceline.

New business brand for Vietnam. As Vietnam witnesses a steady increase in foreign investment and business travel, Fusion Hotel Group has launched Hiive Hotels for business travelers in industrial and logistic hubs. The brand will debut in August with the 172-room Hiive Binh Duong. Looking ahead, Fusion plans to open its second Hiive, the Binh Duong New City (VSIP 2), in the first quarter of 2024.

IHG snags Rihga Royal. The 1,039-room Rihga Royal Hotel Osaka has joined the IHG Hotels & Resorts system and will join its Vignette Collection upon completion of an approximately JPY13.5 billion refurbishment. There will be no immediate changes to the hotel’s branding before repositioning the hotel as Rihga Royal Hotel Osaka, Vignette Collection in 2025. IHG will work closely with property owner, BentallGreenOak and The Royal Hotel Ltd. to ensure all elements of the Rihga Royal brand are retained. Vignette Collection boasts 21 properties and IHG said it is on track to deliver on its ambition of securing more than 100 properties in 10 years.

Hyatt grows in Malta. Hyatt Hotels Corp. has entered into a franchise agreement with JUEL Hospitality Ltd., part of the JUEL Group, to develop the 160-room Hyatt Centric Malta. The hotel is expected to open in early 2024, marking the second Hyatt-branded property in Malta.

Asia deal pace muted. Asia Pacific hotel investment volumes declined by 51% year-on-year in the first half of 2023 as macroeconomic challenges and the rising cost of debt influenced capital deployment, according to JLL research. Coming off a high base in 2022 and despite supportive market fundamentals, hotel investments moderated to $3.13 billion in the first half versus $6.41 billion during the same period last year. Activity during the first half was most robust in Japan ($1.54 billion) and Australia/New Zealand ($820 million), which grew by 56% and 189% year-on-year, respectively. Singapore ($30 million) dropped by 95% year-on-year as the number of transactions declined however with the recent sale of Parkroyal on Kitchener Road for $388 million, the outlook for the second half of the year will be stronger. China ($300 million) also saw activity moderate by 76% year-on-year.

Debt market alive: PMZ Realty Capital has arranged over $60 million in financing in the last few weeks for three separate Hilton properties. The closed transactions include a $34 million, five-year fixed rate loan from a mortgage REIT used to refinance existing bridge loan for Tru by Hilton Orlando Convention Center Area, in Orlando, Florida; a $14 million acquisition renovation loan from a life insurance company with a long-term sponsor client for the Hilton Garden Inn Annapolis, in Annapolis, Maryland; and a $11.3 million loan from a life insurance company that allowed the sponsor to repay the debt on two crossed collateralized CMBS loans for the Hilton Garden Inn Aberdeen, in Aberdeen, Maryland.