Top 5 Hotel Transactions in Nashville

The Music City’s tourism industry has been on overdrive in recent years, with a record 15.2 million tourists visiting Nashville, Tenn., in 2018, according to the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. This marks a 5 percent increase over 2017’s visitor statistics, which set the previous high.

Several thousand rooms have come online during the past five years, with plenty more on the horizon—the market has nearly 120 hotel projects totaling more than 12,000 guestrooms under construction or in planning and permitting stages, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association. In addition to significant development projects, Nashville has seen a number of high-value hospitality transactions. The following list of the metro’s highest-value sales was compiled using documents recorded with Davidson and Williamson counties during the 12 months ending in March.

5. Fairfield Inn & Suites Nashville at Opryland

Fairfield Inn and Suites Nashville at Opryland. Image via Google Street View

In October, Wheelock Street Capital sold two hospitality assets to The Gehr Group. The first, the 109-key Fairfield Inn & Suites Nashville at Opryland, traded for $17.5 million. The buyer financed the acquisition with a five-year, $12.5 million mortgage from BMO Harris Bank.

The property is located at 211 Music City Circle, roughly 10 miles northeast of downtown Nashville. A variety of restaurants and shopping options are in the immediate area, with the Grand Ole Opry a mile and a half to the south. Constructed in 1996, the three-story building contains a mix of standard guestrooms and suites. Guest amenities include a fitness center, indoor swimming pool and convenience store.

4. Courtyard Nashville at Opryland

Courtyard Nashville at Opryland. Image via Google Street View

The second hotel in the portfolio deal between Wheelock and Gehr was the Courtyard Nashville at Opryland. The property contains 94 guestrooms and traded for $17.8 million. BMO Harris Bank also provided acquisition financing for this deal, through a five-year loan for $12.8 million.

The Courtyard is just south of the Fairfield Inn & Suites, at 125 Music City Circle. The asset borders the approximately 290,000-square-foot Two Rivers Corporate Centre, home to Automated Health Systems and HudsonYards Studio. The four-story hotel contains guestrooms and suites, ranging from 264 to 345 square feet. Property amenities include a business center, laundry and dry cleaning services, a pool and a fitness center.

3. Franklin Marriott Cool Springs

Franklin Marriott Cool Springs. Image via Google Maps

The third-largest hospitality transaction in the past 12 months was Crow Holdings’ $74 million disposition of the 300-key Franklin Marriott Cool Springs, the only property on the list outside Nashville city limits. The buyer, Chartwell Hospitality, has an active development portfolio in the metro, opening a 210-key Hilton in Nashville in January.

The Franklin Marriott Cool Springs is located at 700 Cool Springs Blvd. in the southern suburb of Franklin, Tenn. The asset derives significant value from its position in the heart of Nashville’s suburban office market—more than 5.5 million square feet of office space is within a mile of the hotel, per Yardi Matrix data. Guest amenities include a saltwater pool, a business center and three resturants. The property is connected to the 30,000-square-foot Cool Springs Conference Center, owned by the county and the city.

2. Holiday Inn Express Nashville Downtown

Holiday Inn Express Nashville Downtown. Image via Google Street View

JRK Property Holdings’ $117.5 million sale of the Holiday Inn Express Nashville Downtown to Highland Capital Management marks the second-largest hospitality deal in the metro. The buyer assumed $72.5 million of outstanding CMBS debt, spread across three loans, from the seller. The financing originated in 2016 and 2017.

Situated at 920 Broadway, the eight-story building is positioned along the western edge of the central business district. A number of major tourist attractions are nearby, including the Music City Center and the Bridgestone Arena. The property has only operated as a Holiday Inn Express since 2002. Initially constructed as the Sheraton National Hotel in 1968, the structure also was, for a time, under the Ramada Inn flag. On-site amenities include an outdoor swimming pool, complimentary Wi-Fi and more than 10,000 square feet of meeting and conference space. 

1. Hilton Garden Inn Nashville Downtown

Hilton Garden Inn Nashville Downtown. Image via Google Street View

The largest hospitality deal in the metro during the past 12 months was AVR Realty’s $125 million acquisition of the 214-key Hilton Garden Inn Nashville Downtown. In 2016, the seller, Rockbridge, purchased the property for $80.3 million from Chartwell Hospitality, approximately one year after the hotel opened.

Located at 305 Korean Veterans Blvd., the 10-story building rises two blocks east of the Music City Center. The property is not only well-positioned for tourism but also for business travelers, with nearly 4 million square feet of office space within half a mile of the structure, according to Yardi Matrix data. The hotel’s amenity mix includes an outdoor pool, a sports bar, 4,200 square feet of meeting space and valet parking services.