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Hotel Lawyers -- featured subjects and articles
Meet the Money® 2014

ADA defense and compliance

EB-5 financing

Workouts, bankruptcies & receiverships

Hotel Management Agreements

Hotel Franchise & License Agreements

Hotel industry trends

This is Jim Butler, author of www.HotelLawBlog.com and hotel lawyer. Please contact me at Jim Butler at jbutler@jmbm.com or 310.201.3526.

Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
8 May 2008
Hotel Attorney at JMBM’s Hotel Finance Conference: mood of the industry and where we go from here. It is May 8, 2008. JMBM’s 18th annual hotel conference, Meet the Money® 2008 wrapped up this afternoon, and more than 100 of the industry leaders have just shared their latest experiences and outlooks for the remainder of 2008 and beyond.

There is a consensus to the mood of these hotel financing sources and industry leaders. While we have spent two information-packed days getting the details, and nuances of this, here is the overview.

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Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
7 May 2008
Hotel Attorney at JMBM’s 18th Annual Hotel Finance Conference: Hotel Industry’s “Think Tank” gives views on “Top 10 Issues”. Continuing a tradition of many years, the hotel industry’s “Think Tank” released its view on the LIIC Top 10 Issues for the industry.

Here’s what it said . . .

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Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
6 May 2008
Hotel Attorney in Las Vegas, Nevada. Financing a new hotel transaction? Refinancing a hotel mortgage? Looking for hotel debt or equity to buy or develop a hotel or resort? If you are serious about any of these, then you are probably going to be at the Opening Reception tonight for the eighteenth annual Meet the Money® Conference — the gateway of hotel finance.

As JMBM’s hotel attorneys gather with about 400 hotel industry leaders to kick off one of the biggest hotel financing events of the year, excitement is in the air. Starting with a not-to-be-missed networking reception tonight at The Green Valley Ranch in Las Vegas, for the next two days, hotel finance will take center stage.

Stay tuned for updates from Meet the Money® 2008 as we start with our first full day tomorrow morning, May 7. (or check out the Conference web site at www.MeetTheMoney.com).

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Published on:

The Hotel RFP Process: 5 Factors that determine what your RFP looks like.
16 Steps to a successful RFP Process
| Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
1 May 2008
Keywords:

Hotel Operating Agreement, HOA, Hotel Management Agreement, HMA, Hotel Management Contract, Management Contract. Hotel Operator, Hotel Manager, Hotel Owner. RFP for Hotel Manager. RFP for Hotel Operator, How to get a great hotel operator.

Terminology

Contracts between hotel owners and managers (or operators) controlling the management of a hotel go by various names. They are called hotel management agreements, HMAs, hotel management contracts or hotel operating agreements. For convenient reference, this article will generally use the term “Hotel Management Agreement” or “HMA.” However all these terms can be used interchangeably and mean the same thing, just as with hotel operator or hotel manager.

Whatever they are called, Hotel Management Agreements allocate risk between the hotel manager and the hotel owner. They are critical in determining the profitability and value of a hotel.

Hotel Attorney on Hotel Management Agreements. How to get the right brand and operator for your hotel project . . . and a deal you can live with — The Hotel RFP Process.

In the last few articles here at www.HotelLawBlog.com, I have been sharing some of the important lessons our hotel attorneys in the JMBM Global Hospitality Group® have learned about hotel management agreements over more than $125 billion of hotel transactions, involving more than 4,700 properties. While it may be an exaggeration to say that “JMBM wrote the book on hotel management agreements,” we certainly know the area and have at least written a few chapters in that book.

In parts 1 and 2 of this series, we covered:

* How the terms of your hotel management agreement can easily raise or lower the nominal value of your hotel by 25% or more
* The 5 biggest mistakes owners make in pursuing hotel management agreements (and how to avoid them)

* What’s a Hotel RFP and what shapes it.

In case you missed our earlier discussion, please see “How to get the right hotel operator – part 1” and “How to get the right hotel operator – part 2.” You will find it with some other great Hotel Management Agreement resources under the topic by that name here at www.HotelLawBlog.com.

Let’s return now to the Hotel RFP process …

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

The Hotel RFP Process: How to create value
| Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
29 April 2008
Keywords:

Hotel Operating Agreement, HOA, Hotel Management Agreement, HMA, Hotel Management Contract, Management Contract. Hotel Operator, Hotel Manager, Hotel Owner. RFP for Hotel Manager. RFP for Hotel Operator, How to get a great hotel operator.

Terminology

Contracts between hotel owners and managers (or operators) controlling the management of a hotel go by various names. They are called hotel management agreements, HMAs, hotel management contracts or hotel operating agreements. For convenient reference, this article will generally use the term “Hotel Management Agreement” or “HMA.” However all these terms can be used interchangeably and mean the same thing, just as with hotel operator or hotel manager.

Whatever they are called, Hotel Management Agreements allocate risk between the hotel manager and the hotel owner. They are critical in determining the profitability and value of a hotel.

Hotel Attorney on Hotel Management Agreements . How to get the right brand and operator for your hotel project . . . and a deal you can live with — The Hotel RFP Process.

Recently, I talked about some important lessons our hotel attorneys in the Global Hospitality Group® have learned about hotel management agreements — lessons learned in the course of working on more than $87 billion of hotel transactions involving more than 1,000 properties all over the world. Specifically, we looked at

* How the terms of your hotel management agreement can easily raise or lower the nominal value of your hotel by 25% or more
* The 5 biggest mistakes owners make in pursuing hotel management agreements (and how to avoid them)

In case you missed our earlier discussion, please see “How to get the right hotel operator – part 1“. You will find it with some other great Hotel Management Agreement resources under the topic by that name at www.HotelLawBlog.com.

One of the keys we discussed to maximize the value (and avoid the common pitfalls) is the Hotel RFP Process. What is it? What are the steps that should be included in every RFP? Where do you get the form or checklist? What kind of assistance do you need? Here are the answers that may save you a lot of money!

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
29 April 2008
Hotel Attorney on hotel management agreements and operator breach of duty. U.S. District Court confirms that Owner of the Ritz-Carlton Bali can terminate long-term, no-cut management agreement without penalty.

As of April 29, 2008, the Federal District Court in Maryland issued an order ruling on various post-trial motions of our client, the owner of the Ritz-Carlton Bali. The details of this owner-operator dispute have been previously covered here at www.HotelLawBlog.com, but today was the latest development in this struggle.

Here’s what the court said.

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Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
21 April 2008
Keywords:

Hotel Operating Agreement, HOA, Hotel Management Agreement, HMA, Hotel Management Contract, Management Contract. Hotel Operator, Hotel Manager, Hotel Owner. RFP for Hotel Manager. RFP for Hotel Operator, How to get a great hotel operator.

Terminology

Contracts between hotel owners and managers (or operators) controlling the management of a hotel go by various names. They are called hotel management agreements, HMAs, hotel management contracts or hotel operating agreements. For convenient reference, this article will generally use the term “Hotel Management Agreement” or “HMA.” However all these terms can be used interchangeably and mean the same thing, just as with hotel operator or hotel manager.

Whatever they are called, Hotel Management Agreements allocate risk between the hotel manager and the hotel owner. They are critical in determining the profitability and value of a hotel.

Hotel Lawyer on hotel management agreements. Long-term, no-cut hotel management agreements: How to get the right brand and operator for your hotel project . . . and a deal you can live with.
The successful matching of a hotel brand and operator with an asset and its owner is an important determinant of the financial and operational success of a hotel project. Aside from the right “marriage” partners, the terms of the management contract tying them together is critical, because it will likely govern the relationship for decades and is hard to change once cast.

Question: What’s more important for your hotel project than getting the “right” brand and operator?

Answer: Not much! Finding the right operator or brand for your project — and achieving reasonable terms — can make a significant and positive impact in key areas: value, financing, and operational success.

So how do you do that?

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
13 April 2008
Where have all the hotel lenders gone? You will find them at Meet the Money®, May 6-8, 2008 in Las Vegas.

Q: Why go to another hotel conference?
A: It’s the money, silly.

Q: Where do I get more information or register?
A: www.jmbm.com/mtm

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
2 April 2008
Capital Providers to Meet Consumers of Capital in Las Vegas, May 6-8, 2008.
For more information, see www.MeetTheMoney.com. What an ironic paradox! There is such an abundance of capital seeking hotel investment. And at the same time, more hotel owners are frustrated in their efforts to find that very capital. Why can’t the two find one another? Because the capital market “machinery” that used to match up the hotel lenders and equity sources with borrowers, is broken — or at least “out of service” for an undetermined time.

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Published on:

Author of www.HotelLawBlog.com
1 April 2008
Hotel Lawyer on The Hotel Developers Conference™ 2008. Here at www.HotelLawBlog.com and in our everyday practice, the hotel lawyers at JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® are always exploring the cutting edge. Annually, at The Hotel Developers Conference™, the Group’s hotel attorneys bring together the leading experts to illuminate the hottest topics concerning hotel development.

In recent years, the hot subject was condo hotels, and then hotel mixed-use, but this year the entire conference was devoted to GREEN hotel development, construction, rehab and operation. This was a “Gen 2” conference — moving beyond the basics and into the practical guidance and war stories from the veterans in the trenches.

The Hotel Developers Conference™ even had a great panel on the unique aspects of financing and underwriting the green hotel premium, but of course hotel finance — green or otherwise — is the entire subject of JMBM’s industrial strength event.

In any event, here is the scoop on the great panels of the second day from The Hotel Developers Conference™ the 2008 annual edition — Rule #1, “Living” buildings, financing the green premium, and more . . .

CONTINUE READING →

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