Category: Southeast Texas News DO NOT USE

Lowe Joint Venture Acquires Three Hotels in The Woodlands from Howard Hughes Corporation

Posted on by Sarah

A joint venture between Lowe and an institutional investor announced today its acquisition from The Howard Hughes Corporation® (NYSE: HHC) of three hospitality assets located in The Woodlands®, a 28,500-acre award-winning master planned community in the greater Houston area. The Woodlands Resort; The Westin at The Woodlands; and Embassy Suites by Hilton, The Woodlands at Hughes Landing were purchased for $252 million and will continue to be managed by Lowe’s hospitality management subsidiary, CoralTree Hospitality, which took over management of the properties in September of 2020. Lowe will immediately begin a $25 million capital investment program at the three hotels, totaling 909 rooms.

“The Woodlands hotel portfolio acquisition is consistent with our broader hospitality investment strategy that targets quality, full-service hotels and resorts that draw significant leisure travel, but also cater to corporate and group business. Located in a high-growth Houston submarket with strong demand and compelling demographics, the hotels and resort draw from multiple demand segments attracted by the appealing location, lakes, outdoor recreation and considerable amenities within The Woodlands. Business has grown steadily over the past five years and the hotels have weathered the downturn and are rebounding strongly,” said Mike Lowe, co-CEO of Lowe.

With this sale, Howard Hughes has successfully closed on approximately $376 million of the targeted $600 million net proceeds in the sale of non-core assets outlined two years ago. “The sale of our hotel assets in The Woodlands further advances the disposition of non-core assets as outlined in our 2019 strategic initiative,” said David R. O’Reilly, CEO of The Howard Hughes Corporation. “Lowe is recognized for its leading quality service within the hospitality industry, and we are pleased to have found a buyer who shares our commitment to providing visitors to The Woodlands with a best-in-class customer experience.”

Houston Industrial Record

Posted on by Sarah

While the Houston office market has had a rough 12 months, and will likely to continue to lag in the coming quarters, the industrial market is booming. In fact, the industrial market in Houston is so strong that the metro area has hit the highest quarterly leasing total on record, according to a recent report from NAI Partners.

By the end of the second quarter of this year, Houston’s overall industrial vacancy rate stood at 9%, more or less unchanged since the previous quarter, however, there were 12.5 million square feet of leasing activity recorded for Q2 of 2021, which is more than double the 6 million square feet of leasing activity during the same period last year. A wave of new deliveries from previous quarters has kept inventory levels stable and average gross rent rates relatively flat.

The news is significant for numerous reasons, but namely how the industrial market is helping bolster the broader commercial real estate sector as other asset classes continue to struggle since the start of the pandemic. But other economic indicators continue to show improvement, the report reveals, such as lower unemployment stats, the increase in drilling operations, and an uptick in new construction. Click to read more at www.rednews.com.