Hotel Law Blog

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
27 July 2007

Hotel Lawyer on GREEN hotel development. Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro LLP (JMBM) announced today that The Hotel Developers Conference™ 2008 (www.jmbm.com/THDC) will focus entirely on green hotel development and renovation. Presented by the 50-lawyer team of JMBM's Global Hospitality Group® this green hotel "summit" is co-sponsored by the University of Las Vegas (UNLV) and the Los Angeles Chapter of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). More than 450 hospitality industry leaders are expected to attend, March 12-13, 2008, at the Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As we have said here on www.HotelLawBlog.com before: "Don't wait for the GREEN. It is here"

Continue reading "JMBM Hotel Lawyers Announce First Green Hotel Development Conference" »

Posted In: Green Hotels, Hotel Developers Conference™, Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
8 January 2007

Hospitality Lawyer on international hotel investments. In a number of recent postings on www.HotelLawBlog.com, I have focused on the attractiveness of international hotel investments and some of the big names pouring investment overseas. Some of the hot markets include Mexico, Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Spain, Italy, London, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, China and India. In Why we're building hotels in India like crazy, I focused entirely on India, an explosive market that has often been overshadowed by opportunities in China. In announcing plans for Starwood Capital to invest a half billion in India alone, Barry Sternlicht says that there is so much demand that he is targeting an average annual return of 20% on investments in India!

With all the exciting potential for hotel development in these booming markets, it is tempting for developers and investors to rush in to "scoop up the profits". But before they do, it would be wise to remember that risk is usually commensurate with reward. At the very least, they should ask: "What is the best way to make successful foreign hotel investments?" Here are a few thoughts from www.HotelLawBlog.com . . .

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer -- The plays to make successful international hotel investments" »

Posted In: International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
3 January 2007

Hotel Lawyer -- Top Picks of 2006. Yes, 2006 has been a record year for many in the hospitality industry, and for the hotel lawyers at Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro LLP. As we have already given our Outlook for 2007, we thought it might be interesting to look back on our Top Pick articles from 2006 from www.HotelLawBlog.com.

The Top Picks articles are organized by the major TOPICS on the Blog. We generally tried to select just the top two or three articles for each TOPIC. It was a major struggle to decide where to make the cutoff. If you want more information on a particular TOPIC, you can go to www.HotelLawBlog.com, and search for all articles on that TOPIC. To do that, just scroll down the right hand side, and below the (free) subscription and RSS Feed buttons is the Browse search engine that enables you to sort by TOPIC (or date, or key words, etc.).

Here they are . . .

Continue reading "Hotel Lawyer -- Top Picks for 2006" »

Posted In: ADA, Condo Hotels, Disasters, Hotel Management Agreements, Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment, Labor & Employment, Land Use & Entitlements, Outlook and Trends, Workouts, Bankruptcies & Receiverships

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
27 December 2006

Hotel Lawyer on international hotel investment. Over the past two days, the shares of InterContinental Hotels Group Plc -- which describes itself as "the world's biggest lodging company" -- rose substantially, fueling speculation that it has become a takeover target. The shares are up approximately 8% since December 22, 2006 (and 49% for 2006). Citing the Guardian, Bloomberg says there are rumors of a buyout firm making an offer at a "significant premium" to current stock prices. Some think a ₤5.7 billion (U.S.$11.2 billion) offer may be made.

Who are the likely buyers? Aside from the financial aspects of the takeover, what does the interest in InterContinental mean? How does this play into the big push into international hotel investments I have been talking about on www.HotelLawBlog.com in some of the most recent postings? Or into the power of brands, or the rush to hotel-enhanced mixed-use development?

Continue reading "Hotel Lawyer -- What do the InterContinental takeover rumors mean? Why IHG? Why now? Who will win the bid?" »

Posted In: International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
26 December 2006

Hospitality Lawyer India. In a number of articles on www.HotelLawBlog.com, I have talked about the exploding international hotel markets, including Mexico, Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Spain, Italy, London Saudi Arabia, Dubai and China -- but particularly INDIA. Why are we building hotels in India? Why are all of the brands and operators trying to stake out territory in India?

It's not hard to figure out. On December 23, 2006, the Los Angeles Times ran an article by Henry Chu that summed it up pretty well. The headline read: "India, a boom that's bursting at the seams." The explosive growth in India is what has everyone scrambling to feed this hungry market.

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer -- Why we're building hotels in India like crazy! " »

Posted In: International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
11 December 2006

Hospitality Lawyer Baja Mexico. He's done it again if you believe the AP Wire reports. On Saturday, December 9, 2007, the Associated Press reported that, "Donald Trump's new luxury hotel-condominiums on Mexico's booming Baja California coast registered about $122 million in sales Friday, potentially heralding a resurgent development boom along the Pacific shoreline, just south of the U.S. border."

I've noted in prior postings that Baja is red hot, and that Trump has become a brand. So what is noteworthy about this latest development?

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer Baja Mexico -- So what's a brand? How did Trump get into this conversation? " »

Posted In: Condo Hotels, Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
6 December 2006

Hospitality Lawyer: In my last posting on www.HotlelLawBlog.com, I described "what is fanning the condo hotel wild fire in Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, China, India and the Middle East." But condo hotels are only a small segment of the hotel-enhanced mixed-use projects being developed at an rapid pace on the international scene.

The hospitality experts that joined me for JMBM's "Outlook 2007, Hospitality Roundtable" had plenty to say about the hot international markets, and I am delighted to share their insights with the readers of www.HotelLawBlog.com. You should also see a up-to-the-minute news item related to this in the blog "Hospitality Lawyer -- Barry Sternlict and Starwood bet on . . . China!"

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer on hotel mixed-use development projects in China, India, Mexico, the Caribbean, Guam -- What the experts say now." »

Posted In: Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
6 December 2006

Hospitality Lawyer: China. I had no sooner posted my last entry on our expert panel's views for Outlook 2007 as it relates to international markets when I read an update as of December 6, 2007 that Barry Sternlicht and Starwood capital have increased their bet on China! And of course, this comes after a huge investment in India as we discussed in "."Hospitality Lawyer: Sternlicht and Starwood Capital to put $500 million in India for Crillon, '1' Hotels and Residences and budget hotel chain, Campanile

Tom Corcoran, CEO of FelCor, nailed it when he said in today's posting, "When you talk about hot markets, you'd have to say, China, China, China... and India."

Here are the details on the Sternlicht/Starwood investment in China.

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer -- Barry Sternlicht and Starwood bet on . . . China!" »

Posted In: International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
5 December 2006

Condo Hotel Lawyer: In my last two postings on www.HotlelLawBlog.com, I have been reviewing where the condo hotel phenomenon is today and where its going, and what drives success in condo hotel projects. While there are a lot of reasons that condo hotels make sense and have an enduring legacy, the wildfire that has been burning in the U.S. for the past 5 years is now pulsing out in all directions. What has caused the condo hotel craze to spread to Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, China, India and the Middle East? And why is anyone looking to emulate the state of the art developed over the past 5 years in the U.S.?

Continue reading "Condo Hotel Lawyer -- What is fanning the condo hotel wild fire in Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, China, India and the Middle East?" »

Posted In: Condo Hotels, Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment

By Jim Butler, Hotel Lawyer | Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
16 November 2006

Hotel Lawyer on hotel investment n India. As hospitality lawyers, we expected it. In my posting from the Phoenix Lodging Conference entitled Hospitality Lawyer - Hotels in China, India and Mexico are capturing the imagination and resources of the hotel industry, I said that I was struck by how the talk was absolutely dominated by discussions of development in China, India, Mexico and Europe. And I wondered out loud if a new era of hotel development outside the U.S. was already underway.

Well, Bloomberg reported on November 14, that Barry Sternlicht's Starwood Capital has committed up to $500 million to new hotel investment in India. That is one pretty good indication of the trend! In case you missed it, here are the details and what it all means.

Continue reading "Hospitality Lawyer -- Sternlicht's Starwood Capital to put $500 million in India . . . for Crillon, '1' Hotels and Residences and budget hotel chain, Campanile" »

Posted In: Hotel Mixed-Use, International Hotel Investment, Outlook and Trends