South: Hotel investment remains strong as £246m of deals are struck

Investment into hotels in the south east and home counties reached £246 million across 20 transactions in the first half of the year according to international real estate adviser Savills. The market remains strong for hotels in the area, with the volume remaining in line with that transacted for the same period in 2016 (£240m).

Savills notes there is currently around £178m of hotel stock on the open market in the region. The south east and home counties accounted for 29% of regional UK transactions, while the UK total, driven by London, stood at £2 billion for H1. This is ahead of the south west and Scotland, but behind the north which accounted for 36% of transactions (£304m). 

The market has been characterised by individual sales, predominantly in the £1m to £10m bracket which accounted for 50% of transactions in the region. Seven transactions took place for assets between £10m and £20m and three for assets between £20m to £30m.

Martin Rogers, head of UK hotel transactions at Savills, commented: “The hotel market has had a strong start to the year as the sector remains resilient to the headwinds of the last six months. The south east region is no exception, with single asset investors boosting the market as they seek long term income.” 

Vacant possession transactions and management contract transactions have dominated the market according to the firm. Buyers have been growing their UK-wide portfolios, with many new entrants to the market instructing management companies to add weight to the assets.

Georgie Liggins, surveyor in the hotels team at Savills, added: “The south east and home counties area is a historically well-performing market, benefitting from it’s proximity to London and the coast. The first half of the year has been testament to this, with investor demand being buoyed by the growing staycations market as the public turn their attention to holidays and experiences in the UK.”