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1. New York City sues landlord over illegal rentals
The city of New York has filed a lawsuit against the owner of two brownstones on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, alleging he has made $550,000 in recent years through illegal short-term rentals, the New York Times reports. The city said he illegally converted these rent-stabilized apartment and displaced long-term tenants.
“Rent-stabilized apartments are critical to our affordable housing stock,” said Christian Klossner, the executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement, which led the investigation. “This person chose to maximize his profit to the detriment of New Yorkers.”
2. Australian hotel deals rebounded in 2025
Australia's hotel transactions reached 2.7 billion Australian dollars ($1.9 billion) in 2025, an 80% increase over 2024, according to a new report from Colliers. The country saw 67 properties transact at an average deal size of $40 million.
Among the year's deals were the Ayers Rock Resort, the Park Hyatt Melbourne and the Melbourne Place in Victoria, which is now Hyde Melbourne Place.
“The diversity of buyers in 2025 was striking," said Karen Wales, head of hotels, transaction services at Colliers, in a news release. "Family offices and high-net-worth individuals accounted for a third of total deal flow, reflecting a growing appetite for long-term, legacy assets. These groups are less reliant on leverage, which makes them highly competitive in a high-rate environment.”
3. Analysts expect conversative outlooks from hotel earnings calls
As hotel earnings season begins for publicly traded hotel companies, industry analysts told CoStar News Hotels' Trevor Simpson they believe the brand companies and real estate investment trusts will offer more conservative outlooks for the year.
That's not so much a result of predictions of worse performance than in 2025 as it is reflection of the lack of visibility.
"It's just always tough when you're having to cut guidance every 90 days," said Michael Bellisario, senior research analyst at Baird Capital. "You'll see wider ranges and perhaps a little extra conservatism, because you can. The stocks are down. Sentiment is negative. The market is sort of giving you a pass to do that."
4. Cuba warns of jet fuel shortage
The Cuban government is telling international airlines they cannot refuel any planes arriving at the island nation, citing U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to place tariffs on any country to supplies Cuba with oil, CNBC reports. The kerosene shortage is expected to continue through the month.
Cuba is reportedly planning to restrict fuel supplies to protect essential services, rationing it key sectors. It will restrict fuel sales, close some tourist establishments, shorten school days and reduce the work week for state-owned companies to Monday through Thursday.
Mexico's government, which has paused shipments of crude and refined oil to Cuba, is planning to send humanitarian aid to Cuba and try to find a diplomatic solution to the fuel shortage.
5. January US inflation number could be high
The numbers for U.S. inflation numbers for January will arrive later this week, and while many expect a 0.3% monthly increase in consumer prices, others on Wall Street are worried about a surprise, the Wall Street Journal reports. In recent years, January inflation figures have "come in relatively hot."
While some will point to companies passing on the cost of tariffs to consumers, there's also the fact that many companies see January as to reset pricing for the new year as well as end holiday-related discounts.