Articles Posted in Hotel Finance − Hotel Debt & Hotel Equity

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Meet the Money® 2016 – May 2-4, 2016: 26th National Hotel Finance & Investment Conference in Los Angeles

Getting to the winner’s circle – marathon, sprint or obstacle course?

LOS ANGELES –  The 26th annual edition of Meet the Money®, the national hotel finance and investment conference, will be at the Sheraton LAX May 2-4, 2016. The conference will host hotel owners, developers, operators, brands, lenders, investors and other capital providers.

Conference speakers will explore financing, re-financing, development, and deals, as they try to answer the questions: what part of the investment cycle are we in? And what should you do about it?

“Industry fundamentals continue to be positive,” said Jim Butler, Chairman of JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group®. “Investor sentiment seems to be shifting. With the REITs on the sidelines, some see this as a great buying opportunity. Others see storm clouds on the horizon and seek shelter from investment risk. Uncertain times like this make it important to decide what strategies will get you to the winner’s circle.”

Meet the Money® 2016 will present 25 panels and special presentations featuring more than 100 industry leaders, including:

  • Thought leaders from the Executive Suite
  • Changes in Chinese investment in U.S. hotels, and what this means to you
  • Investment strategies in a changing market
  • Many panels with lenders, equity investors and other capital providers
  • Construction financing
  • Bread & butter financing
  • EB-5 financing
  • Buying and selling hotels
  • Optimizing hotel value with brands and management
  • Cybersecurity breaches and preventative measures
  • Dress for distress–avoiding pitfalls and finding opportunities

CONTINUE READING →

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08 February 2016

Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. 

Hotel Lawyer in Los Angeles at the latest EB-5 Summit

If you have been thinking about tapping into EB-5 financing for your development project, this is the time to make your decision and act quickly. If you need background on what the EB-5 program is about, how it has gone mainstream with institutional investors for several years, and is now providing a steady stream of reliable capital, please see the articles referenced at the bottom.

We think that JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® EB-5 financing team has a pretty good perspective on the opportunity, the risks, and how to get clean execution. We have closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing and sourced more than half of that for our clients.

If you have missed our reporting of key events affecting the availability of EB-5 financing here, you need to know that the EB-5 program was extended for another year through September 30, 2016 without any changes. But just as the maximum number of visas has been reached in each of the past two years, the experts expect that we will “cap out” at the maximum 10,000 visas even earlier in 2016 – possibly as early as May or June.

And the “reformers” are still out there, with proposals to revise the EB-5 program the next time it comes up for renewal. So this is a great time to move into action while EB-5 financing continues to be accessible for top developers with great projects and a strong track record.

We are confident that most people who delay will wish they had started earlier and gotten in on this great source of relatively inexpensive financing early in the game. CONTINUE READING →

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18 December 2015

Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. 

Hotel lawyer with great news for developers: the EB-5 immigrant visa financing program has been renewed — approved by Congress and signed by the President. It is being continued without change through September 30, 2016.

JMBM’s team has closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing and sourced more than half of that for our clients

A funny thing happened on the way to the 2016 Federal budget approval last week. One of the “riders” to the omnibus appropriations bill was the EB-5 legislation sponsored by Senators Leahy and Grassley. For months preceding the scheduled Congressional action, many stakeholders in the EB-5 industry spent untold hours in negotiating complex provisions to deal with certain concerns regarding the program. These negotiations resulted in multiple drafts of the proposed legislation being exchanged between Congressional staff and industry leaders, with the “final” draft receiving the unanimous approval of the trade organization for regional centers, the Invest in the USA or IIUSA. It was a good compromise on many knotty issues.

Then at the proverbial 11th hour . . . on Wednesday, December 16, the elaborate “final” compromise proposal was jettisoned in favor of a simple extension of the expiration date for the Regional Center program to September 30, 2016, without any other changes to the program.

The EB-5 regional center program is extended without any other changes.

Yes. That is right. After all the discussions and proposals, THE ONLY CHANGE IN THE LAW IS AN EXTENSION OF THE EFFECTIVE DATE FOR THE PROGRAM THROUGH NEXT YEAR.

Now, as the program has been renewed without a single change, lenders and foreign investors are now rushing to fill the pipeline again. And it is much more desirable to be at the front of the line, rather than at the back of the line.

Nothing was done about any other issues, including the following: CONTINUE READING →

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08 December 2015

Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. 

Editor’s note: The EB-5 program has been renewed! The article below describes the changes to the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa program that were ALMOST enacted in December 2015. At the eleventh hour, Congress completely shelved all the proposals discussed below, and instead decided to continue the program, without any change, through September 15, 2016. 

Hotel Lawyer preview of the new EB-5 financing rules.

Although minor tweaks and adjustments continue to be made to legislation in the final hours before Congress votes, it looks like we have a pretty good idea of what the new rules will be for EB-5 financing. Top takeaways for developers are:

  • The EB-5 regional center program will be extended for 5 years
  • Developers will be able to raise 60% more EB-5 capital on the same number of jobs
  • Minimum investment will be raised to $800,000 (not expected to deter investors)
  • TEAs will be forced into a “modified California model” of not more than 12 contiguous tracts
  • NOW is a good time to get started on EB-5 financing before the New Year rush
  • There will be much greater scrutiny and compliance required of those in the capital raising process, and there may be a trickle-down effect on developers (unless they want to form and use their own regional center)

Read on for more details. CONTINUE READING →

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Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. 

02 October 2015

We are pleased that the Continuing Resolution passed by Congress yesterday includes a temporary extension of the EB-5 Regional Center Program. This extension allows the program to continue generating foreign direct investment and creating U.S. jobs through December 11, 2015.

In addition to extending the current program to December 11, this will also provide additional time for Congress to consider a long-term reauthorization bill that would include reform measures to strengthen federal oversight and the integrity of the program. Members of Congress from both parties and both the House and Senate are negotiating in good faith.

This week, two Senate bills were introduced that propose revisions to the EB-5 program.

Last week, our team closed $350 million in EB-5 financing for our developer clients. We have closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing and sourced more than half of that for our clients and believe the EB-5 program will continue to be an important source of funding for qualified projects.

We will continue to report on EB-5 developments as they unfold. CONTINUE READING →

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09 September 2015

Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. 

Editor’s note: The EB-5 program has been renewed! Congress completely shelved all the proposals discussed below, and instead decided to continue the program, without any change, through September 15, 2016. 

For the current status of the EB-5 financing program, see “EB-5 Immigrant Visa program extension signed into law — without any changes. EB-5 financing continues for new development projects.“

EB-5 is at a critical renewal point

The next 3 weeks are going to be crucial for the EB-5 industry as the current legislation sunsets on September 30, 2015. While the consensus is that this important program will be renewed, and perhaps made permanent, there are lots of currents circulating about possible changes in the program.

We want to share with you some keen insights we recently received.

EB-5 update and insights from an industry insider

Below is the full text of a letter recently sent to industry colleagues by Pat Hogan, President, CMB. Pat is one of the leading proponents of EB-5, and is also a founder and board member of the IIUSA (Invest In the USA) which is the national industry trade association for the EB-5 Regional Center Program.

Greetings,

I wanted to share my thoughts with you after having recently visited no less than 60 Congressional and Senatorial offices within the last 40 days. I also just attended the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) EB-5 Investors Summit this past weekend in Las Vegas.

CONTINUE READING →

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23 June 2015

Jack Westergom, Managing Director of Manhattan Hospitality Advisors, discusses hotel operating agreements, asset management, and the RFP process in the video below.

Jack spoke with David Sudeck, a senior partner in the JMBM Global Hospitality Group®, as part of our video interview series on hotel finance and investment opportunities in 2015.

A transcript follows the video.

Jack Westergom discusses hotel operating agreements, asset management and cycles - Meet the Money®

David Sudeck: I’m David Sudeck. I’m a senior attorney with Global Hospitality Group® at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell. We’re here at the 25th Annual Meet the Money® Conference. I’m here with Jack Westergom, Managing Director of Manhattan Hospitality Advisors. Welcome.

Jack Westergom: Thank you. CONTINUE READING →

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22 June 2015

Vail Brown, Vice President of STR, discusses all-time highs in the hospitality market for multiple metrics, her predictions for the next few years, and STR’s expansion into food and beverage analysis in the following video.

Vail spoke with David Sudeck, a senior partner in the JMBM Global Hospitality Group®, as part of our video interview series on hotel finance and investment opportunities in 2015.

A transcript follows the video below.

Vail Brown discusses all-time highs in hotel supply growth, and other metrics - Meet the Money®

David Sudeck: I’m David Sudeck, I’m with Jeffer Mangels Global Hospitality Group. We’re here at the 2015 Meet the Money® Conference, which is the 25th Annual Meet the Money® Conference. We’re with Vail Brown, Vice President of STR. Welcome.

Vail Brown: Thank you. CONTINUE READING →

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18 June 2015

Deric Eubanks, Chief Financial Officer of Ashford Hospitality Trust, discusses why now is a great time to buy hotels, which segment provides the best opportunities, and how supply growth will affect the hospitality industry over the next few years.

Deric sat down with Bob Braun, a senior partner in the JMBM Global Hospitality Group®, as part of our video interview series on hotel finance and investment opportunities in 2015.

A transcript follows the video below.

Deric Eubanks talks about the hottest hospitality segments for investors - Meet the Money®

Bob Braun: Hi, I’m Bob Braun. I am a Partner at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell and I’m a senior member of our Global Hospitality Group, and I’m here with Deric Eubanks, who is the CFO of Ashford Hospitality Trust. We wanted to take a chance to talk about what you see in the market, and importantly, how Ashford is reacting to what you see in the market.

Deric Eubanks: Sure. CONTINUE READING →

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17 June 2015

Alice Gao, Senior Vice President of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, discusses ICBC’s global reach, its U.S. lending program, and recent deals in the video below.

Alice spoke with David Sudeck, a senior partner in the JMBM Global Hospitality Group®, as part of our video interview series on hotel finance and investment opportunities in 2015.

A transcript follows the video.

Alice Gao talks about hospitality opportunities with ICBC, the largest bank in the world

David Sudeck: We’re here at the Meet the Money® Conference 2015, which is the 25th Annual Hotel Investment Conference for JMBM. I’m sitting here with Alice Gao, Senior Vice President and Head of Commercial Banking with ICBC. Thank you for joining us. Nice to see you.

Alice Gao: Hi David, thank you for inviting me. CONTINUE READING →

Contact Information
Jim Butler, Chairman
Global Hospitality Group®
Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP
(310) 201-3526 • jbutler@jmbm.com
www.HotelLawyer.com

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