JLL Lends a Hand in Iconic NYC Hotel Sale

By Scott Baltic, Contributing Editor

Lobby at Royalton Hotel, NYC

New York’s own Highgate and the Rockpoint Group, of Boston, have purchased the Royalton Hotel in New York for $55 million, it was announced late last week by JLL, which arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, FelCor Lodging Trust.

JLL also secured $36.4 million in acquisition financing through Deutsche Bank, on behalf of the buyers.

The Royalton is a full-service boutique hotel at 44 W. 44th St., between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan near Times Square, Grand Central Station and Rockefeller Center. The property features 168 guestrooms, a full-service restaurant and bar, a fitness center, and a business center, among other amenities.

Highgate did not respond to Commercial Property Executive’s request for additional information. 

International Director Jeffrey Davis, Managing Director Gilda Perez-Alvarado and Vice President Michael Reiss led the JLL team on the sale, and Managing Director Kevin Davis and Senior Vice President Matt Nowaczyk led the financing efforts.

RevPAR decline

In the first quarter, Manhattan hotels recorded a 2.3 percent decline in RevPAR, the eighth such decline in the past nine quarters, according to a report from PWC. Similarly the average daily rate declined, for the ninth consecutive quarter.

Despite ongoing supply growth, however, demand for hotel rooms in Manhattan nudged occupancy up by a “tepid” 0.3 percent, according to the report.

Image courtesy of Royalton Hotel