Real estate giant CBRE has released its latest bi-monthly report which has revealed that €710 million could be spent on hotel transactions in Ireland this year, matching the record-high set in 2015.
The first nine months of 2016 saw the completion of 37 Irish hotel transactions for a capital value of €283 million, with a number of transactions to be closed before the end of the year. The transaction volumes would be even higher if there was sufficient hotel product available for opportunities due to very strong demand among Irish and international hoteliers, stated CBRE.
Recent hotel sales has seen the Spencer Hotel in the IFSC, the Beacon Hotel in Sandyford and the Morgan Hotel in Temple Bar acquired by a partnership headed by media and hotel billionaire John Malone in a €150 million deal as well as German investment company Deka acquiring the Doubletree by Hilton for €180 million. Dan O'Connor of JLL, who handled the sale of The Viking Hotel in Waterford, commented that the "strong price highlights the continued improvement in hotel values and yield compression, which we have seen across the provincial Irish hotel market during 2016", reports the Irish Independent.
Other Irish hotel transactions has seen Tipperary's four-star Ballykisteen Hotel and Golf Resort being sold well in excess of its €2 million guide price, while the likes of Dublin Airport has received planning permission for a new terminal-linked four-star, 11-storey hotel and Irish hotel group Tifco await approval by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission for the takeover of Ireland's Travelodge franchise.
The CBRE report added that there is a shortage of product currently in the Dublin pub market with very few pubs being offered for sale despite considerable demand for well-located premises, saying that spend has been "somewhat disappointing". Its report said that for the first nine months of 2016 there was 23 pubs sold in Dublin for a total of approximately €28 million.
Currently there are a further 13 pubs with their sale already agreed on, totalling €22 million, however not all of the transactions are likely to be closed by the year-end said CBRE.
