A fund managed by Magna Hospitality has sold a portfolio of four hotels owned by for a total of $489.8 million, according to CoStar records.
The deal was brokered by JLL Hotels & Hospitality and was structured as a sale between Magna Hotel Fund VI — a $250 million fund closed in 2018 — and a group of unidentified "large institutional owners" along with a separate Magna fund that will maintain partial ownership of the portfolio. Four different lenders were involved in the deal but they were not identified.
The 196-room Hilton Garden Inn New York Times Square North was sold at $115,555,188 or $589,567 a key. The hotel was purchased in September 2021 by Magna for $88.5 million, or $451,531 a key.
The 374-room Motto by Hilton New York City Chelsea sold for $222,160,351, or $594,012 a key. The hotel opened in December 2021.
The leasehold interest in the 320-room DoubleTree by Hilton New York Times Square South was sold for $99,764,256, or $311,763 a key. The hotel opened in 2019 and was sold to Magna in June 2021 for $47.4 million.
The leasehold interest in the 239-room Fairfield Inn & Suites New York Midtown Manhattan Penn Station sold for $52,298,288, or $218,821 a key. Magna purchased the property in December 2020 for $57.4 million.
The portfolio deal marks the largest sale in the New York market to be initiated and closed since the city's Safe Hotels Act, which requires special licenses for hotel operators, went into effect in May.
"New York City has had healthy performance so far this year, with [average daily rates] up 4.7% through August," said Jan Freitag, national director for hospitality market analytics at CoStar. "This sustained pricing power has made assets in the city attractive, and so it is no surprise that more transactions are being talked about or consummated. The price per key in the fee simple part of the transaction speaks to the strength of the asset class, based on healthy market demand fundamentals and continued robust pricing power."