Despite the great uncertainty that could be caused at the end of the year by the rise in interest rates announced by the central banks, the hotel segment continues in 2022 with the upward cycle that began in 2021 and seems to be unaffected by the current economic, political and energy instability. Thus, this segment is registering record investment volumes this year, with 2,050 million euros up to September and could reach record volumes similar to those of 2017 by the end of the year.
While in Spain hotel investment in the first half of the year has increased by 22% year-on-year, in Europe it has fallen by 15% in the same period. These are the main conclusions of the Catella Hotel Snapshot report presented by the consultancy firm Catella Spain.
Main operations
The main transactions have once again been led by assets in prime locations, with Madrid, Barcelona, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and the Costa del Sol standing out. The combination of a large number of transactions, their high price and the large number of portfolios transacted has made it possible to exceed the figures for 2021, with an average ticket per transaction of 28.8 million euros, and an average price per room of 174,060 euros. The most noteworthy transactions were Princesa Plaza in Madrid, the KKR portfolio in the Balearic Islands, the Hotel 7Pines Resort in Ibiza and the Hoteles Ayre portfolio in various cities.
According to Javier Bravo, Partner and Head of Hotels & Hospitality at Catella Spain, "the hotel segment is consolidating as one of the most important and Spain is a safe haven destination for investors. After an excellent 2021 in which hotel investment returned to pre-COVID levels, 2022 looks set to be a year of consolidation of this trend".
Funds are leading the way in investment
With regard to the investor profile, the trend remains the same as in previous years. Large funds are at the forefront of investment, accounting for just over 61% of the total, and the socimis are reducing their market share from 15% in 2021 to 5% this year.
On the other hand, and compared to 2021, when many hotel chains decided to divest assets in order to obtain liquidity, this year they are once again gaining prominence, representing almost 12% of total investment, although this is mainly due to the acquisition by the Leonardo hotel chain of the KKR portfolio.
The urban segment continues to account for most of the investment, with a volume of 56%. Madrid accounted for more than 30% of the operations, reaching 580 million euros. However, Barcelona, which occupied the first position last year, has seen its investment volume decrease by 70%. In any case, 80% of the investment has been made in consolidated prime locations such as Madrid and Barcelona, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and the Costa del Sol.
