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1. Arora Group acquires Ministry of Justice building in London for £245 million
Family office Arora Group has acquired for £245 million ($331.6 million) 102 Petty France in the Westminster district of London, CoStar News Hotels reports. The building's main occupant currently is the United Kingdom government's Ministry of Justice, which has a lease that runs until the end of 2028.
Arora Chief Operating Officer Sanjay Arora said the top option for is to convert it into a luxury hotel. The time until the current lease ends gives the company enough runway with all stakeholders and make the property "something very special."
The seller, Land Securities Group, or Landsec, said the sale of the building, which it developed in 1976, “[crystalizes] substantial value via a deal which is immediately accretive to Landsec’s return on equity.”
2. MCR to take Soho House private in $2.7 billion deal
MCR Hotels will take private Soho House and its 46 membership-clubs hotels and other hotel interests in a deal that places a value on the company of $2.7 billion, CoStar News Hotels’ reports. MCR has agreed to pay shareholders $9 per share in cash, an 83% premium to the unaffected share price.
Soho House also announced some personnel changes. Starting immediately is new Chief Financial Officer Neil Thomson, who arrives from being CFO at F&B firm Del Frisco, and Hollywood actor and tech investor Ashton Kutcher, who will join Soho House’s board of directors.
3. Analysts appraise share repurchasing trend in hospitality real estate investment trusts
The current stock and transaction environment continues to drive hotel real estate investment trust leadership teams to repurchase their respective companies' shares, reports CoStar News Hotels’ Natalie Harms. Most of the major U.S. publicly traded hotel REITs have repurchased shares during the first two quarters of 2025.
Michael Bellisario, senior research analyst, Baird Capital, said he has seen this trend, and adds that the scale of it is notable.
“Stock prices are down, sentiment is down, multiples are low, so cost of capital is elevated. The bid-ask spread for transactions is wide. Therefore, the management team is saying, ‘What do we do with our capital?’ And for the most part, these REITs are buying back stock,” he said.
4. IHCL and Madison sign 10-hotel deal in India
Indian Hotels Company Limited and developer Madison, a division of Terminus Group and JV Ventures, have signed an agreement to open 10 hotels under IHCL’s Ginger brand in the southern states of India, the Economic Times of India reports. As part of the agreement, Madison will invest 5 billion Indian rupees ($57.2 million) in the portfolio within the next three years.
Last week, IHCL acquired 51% of two Indian hotel-operating firms, ANK Hotels and Pride Hospitality, investing 2.04 billion Indian rupees into the pair. ANK has 67 hotels in operation and 44 in its pipeline, and Pride has 13 hotels in operation and 11 in its pipeline.
5. Braemar refinances Scottsdale Four Seasons for $180 million
Dallas-based hotel REIT Braemar Hotels & Resorts refinanced for $180 million the 210-key Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North, according to a news release. The new non-recourse loan bears interests at a floating rate of SOFR plus 3%, according to a news release. Aareal Capital Corp. is the lender.
Braemar President and CEO Richard Stockton said the agreement’s “flexible financing significantly enhances our liquidity while also lowering our cost of debt at a higher loan to value.”