Málaga: One of Spain’s Top Cities for Hotel Investment Again in 2018

11 January 2019 – La Opinión de Málaga

Málaga has consolidated its position as one of the tourist areas with the highest volume of hotel investment in recent years, even though the data for 2018 was somewhat lower than that registered in 2017, which was an “extraordinary” year, according to a report presented yesterday by the consultancy firm Colliers International Spain. In this way, Málaga recorded a total investment of €215 million in 2018, which represented 5% of the national total, estimated at €4.81 billion. The study includes investments in existing hotels (improvements and sales/purchases) as well as those dedicated to land and non-hotel properties (for their conversion to hotel use).

The consultancy firm explained that hotel investment at the national level increased by 23.1% in 2018 with respect to the previous year, to achieve a “new historical maximum”. Nevertheless, in the case of Málaga, investment decreased by 50%, motivated by the high levels reached in the area in recent times, with a “very vertical” investment, which has made investors “more cautious” following an “extraordinary” 2017 (…), according to the Partner and Director for Hotels at the consultancy, Miguel Vázquez.

In 2018, ten hotel transactions were closed in Málaga (two in the capital and eight in the rest of the province). The most important deal was the purchase of a hotel by the Greek hotel group Ikos Resorts. In the capital, the purchases corresponded to NH Málaga and Vincci Málaga – in both cases, the ownership changed hands but the hotel management remained the same.

Two buildings were also purchased for hotel use, both in the capital: the Equitativa (acquired by the Didra investor group) and another on Calle Puerta del Mar, where the chain Catalonia is going to open a hotel. On the other hand, there were two land operations, also in the capital, by Room Mate and Well&Come.

The Canary Islands was ranked ahead of Málaga as the region that accounted for the most investment in 2018 (€1.63 billion), which represented 35% of the total, followed by the Balearic Islands, with €944 million (21%). Madrid accounted for another 13% of hotel investment (€601 million) whilst Barcelona recorded €244 million (5%), very similar figures to Málaga. The Catalan capital also saw its investment volume decrease by 50% in 2018, according to data from Colliers International Spain (…).

The strength of the holiday sector

Based on the figures for 2018, Spain was ranked in second place for hotel investment in Europe, behind the United Kingdom, according to data recorded to September 2018, with a market share of 24% of the total for the region, which amounted to €21.6 billion. In total, 273 hotels were purchased, containing 36,189 rooms, 91 more than during the previous year, when 182 establishments changed hands involving 28,813 rooms (…).

Original story: La Opinión de Málaga (by José Vicente Rodríguez)

Translation: Carmel Drake

The Race To Buy Hotels On The Costa del Sol Intensifies

29 August 2017 – Málaga Hoy

More than 20 hotels along the Costa del Sol and in Málaga have changed hands in just three years. The exceptional data in the tourist sector and the lack of interest in other assets have converted hotel investment into a highly disputed prize. At the beginning of August, Internos Global Investors, a real estate investment fund founded in 2008 by Jos Short and Andrew Thornton, two Brits with prior experience in the real estate sector in the USA, confirmed the purchase of Vincci Posada del Patio, a five-star property located in the centre of Málaga, for €26.7 million. This is just one example of a phenomenon that seems unstoppable right now.

In July, the Hotel Príncipe Sol de Torremolinos changed hands for the second time in two years. The Meliá group sold it in 2015 to the US investment fund Starwood Capital. That operation formed part of a global agreement comprising seven hotel complexes in Spain. Nevertheless, the US firm held onto the property for just 24 months and sold it in July to the British fund London Regional Properties.

At the beginning of the year, Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios (….) acquired its third hotel in the province: namely, the NH Málaga, a complex for which it disbursed €23 million with the commitment of undertaking an extension amounting to an additional €18 million. In 2015, it acquired Vincci Málaga (€20 million) and in 2014, it purchased the four-star Hotel Guadalmina from the Moroccan businessman Judas Azuelos in an operation estimated to be worth €21.5 million.

(…) One of the Hispania’s rivals in the hotel market is HI Partners, created by Banco Sabadell in 2015 (…). That entity currently owns more than 30 establishments, of which three are located in Málaga. In 2015, it purchased the Hotel Silken Puerta Málaga, which has been renamed Sercotel Málaga (…). In 2016, it acquired Incosol (…) and at the end of last year, it bought the four-star Hotel Málaga Palacio from the AC Group (…).

In addition, at the end of 2016, the French fund Foncière des Régions spent more than €500 million on 19 hotel establishments that Merlin Properties owned in Spain, including the Tryp Alameda in Málaga. That operation was signed almost at the same time as the arrival of Activum SG Capital (….), which acquired the Marqués de Sonora building located on Calle Granada from the Azucarera Larios company, which it plans to convert into a luxury hotel with 82 rooms.

Moreover, Mazabi, an investment fund that manages the wealth of eight Spanish families, acquired the former Hotel Senator de Estepona at the end of 2015 (…).

Plenty of other groups have also expressed their interest in joining the ever-expanding list of investors with properties along the Costa del Sol, including the Mallorcan entity Logitravel, the hotel group Palia and the Catalan firm Estival Group (…).

Original story: Málaga Hoy

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hispania On Verge Of Closing Purchases Worth €200M+

27 April 2015 – Cinco Días

The company managed by Azora informs the CNMV about its “advanced agreements”.

The billionaire George Soros owns a 17% stake in the Socimi.

Socimis have become very important players in the real estate sector in recent months through numerous purchases. And there are many more in the pipeline. On Thursday, Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios announced that it was on the verge of closing purchases worth more than €200 million.

These listed real estate investment companies are listed vehicles, created to undertake the acquisition and development of urban real estate assets for lease. They have tax advantages, for example they pay corporation tax at a rate of 19%, and they are required to distribute dividends.

Hispania has sent the National Stock Exchange Commission information about its updated portfolio, which explains that it has made “advanced agreements” with a value of more than €200 million, and is on the verge of signing the contracts.

Moreover, the Socimi reports that it involved in various deals involving assets worth more than €2,200 million, although it does not specify the negotiation phase. Hispania, which is managed by the company Azora, also updates the value of its current portfolio, to €993 million, held in various properties. In February, it agreed an alliance with Barceló with the aim of launching Bay, the first Socimi dedicated to investing in the hotel sector in Spain. Initially, the vehicle acquired 11 hotels containing 3,946 rooms. Thanks to that transaction, 57% of Hispania’s portfolio is hotel-based; 27% is invested in offices and 16% is residential.

George Soros owns a 17% stake

The fund Soros Management, managed by the billionaire investor George Soros, controls 16.7% of the listed company, according to the information provided to the CNMV. Furthermore, the manager Paulson & Co, owned by the investor John Paulson, holds an equal stake and so is another important shareholder.

Hispania also has several other hotels in its portfolio, including the Vincci Málaga, the Hesperia Ramblas (Barclona) and the Guadalmina (Marbella).

Original story: Cinco Días (by Alfonso Simón)

Translation: Carmel Drake