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Christie and Co has witnessed a surge in hotel buyer enquiries and viewings of hotel opportunities since lockdown restrictions began to lift on 27 April, with enquiries rising by 84% up to 22 June.
The specialist business property adviser published its findings in its first edition of the Buyer Registration Index, which focuses on how buyer sentiment has evolved during the lockdown period and beyond.
Demand from hotel investors “remained very strong” during this period, with investors “actively” chasing opportunities in the market for both closed and existing businesses.
In addition, its latest index found that, compared with the company’s seven other sectors, the hotel industry has seen “one of the biggest upticks” in buyer registrations.
Christie and Co said it now expects this increased activity to be maintained, particularly as banks begin to turn their focus to new lending.
The property adviser added that low interest rates and a rise in unemployment could encourage more people to look towards other investment opportunities, with operational real estate proving an “attractive” proposition for many.
Carine Bonnejean, managing director of hotels at Christie and Co, said: “The last few months have been incredibly hard for the hotel industry, which has seen a severe halt on business operations.
“But, despite this, it has remained resilient and we are seeing that investors still have a strong appetite for this market.”
She added: “As we enter the summer period, booking websites and reservation platforms are reporting unprecedented levels of enquiries as domestic guests are keen to escape for a leisure break in seaside and rural destinations.
“This provides a great opportunity for some hotels to capitalise on this short-term demand boost and collect some well-needed cash liquidity.”
According to Christie and Co, however, the market outlook is more uncertain post-summer, with international travel and business demand taking time to recover.
The group does not anticipate the market to return to pre-Covid-19 levels until 2022 “at the earliest”.
