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Press Release
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Contact: Nick Derasmo (212.841.7505) |
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NEW YORK CITY LODGING MARKET SHOWS RESILIENCE AND STRENGHT |
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Thursday, May 16, 2002
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New York, NY
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Despite suffering the worst single-year revenue-per- available-room (RevPAR) decline in its history in 2001 (a nearly 22% drop according to Ernst & Young), the New York lodging market has remained strong through first-quarter 2002, says Mark Gordon, head of Sonnenblick-Goldman's International Lodging and Leisure Group. He notes that because of historically low-level interest rates and lenders demonstrating flexibility with their New York City borrowers, the up-to-ten New York City hotel foreclosures that were widely predicted, and which initially caused investor panic, have simply not occurred.
"New York City's many unique attributes contribute to investor and lender confidence that this is the most resilient lodging market in the world," states Gordon.
Vice President Elif Bali adds, "New York remains under-hoteled relative to the size of its demand base, and it still serves as the capital for more business sectors than any other city in the world, including financial services, entertainment, advertising and law."
In fact, New York houses more Fortune 500 corporate headquarters than any other city, and over 2,500 foreign-based companies have established operations in the city. In addition to these corporate demand generators, New York's cultural and tourist attractions make the city a year-round leisure destination.
"From a market fundamentals perspective, as well as a performance basis, New York is truly the world's strongest lodging market," asserts Gordon. "For this reason, investors and lenders will always have confidence in this market over and above other leading lodging markets."
Despite New York's 2001 RevPAR decline, the city still had the strongest 2001 occupancy of any major market in the U.S., at nearly 74%, according to Smith Travel Research. "These are the types of unparalleled results that allow investors to feel secure in hotel investments here and also allow them to move past short-term performance declines with an eye toward long-term returns," says Bali. |
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Sonnenblick-Goldman, LLC is the industry’s leading independent real estate investment banking firm. Founded in 1893 to serve the financing needs of the real estate industry, Sonnenblick-Goldman, LLC provides a full range of financial services, including debt and equity placements, joint ventures, investment sales and advisory services. Headquartered in New York, Sonnenblick-Goldman maintains offices in San Francisco, Boston, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney and Tokyo. Further information can be found at Sonnenblick-Goldman, LLC’s website at www.cushwake.com/sonngold.
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