Blackstone to Sell Phoenix Luxury Resort for $705M

Article originally posted on Globe St. on April 10, 2024

Blackstone has struck an agreement to sell the Arizona Biltmore hotel to a London-based private equity real estate manager called Henderson Park for $705 million, according to Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the matter as a source.

The Phoenix property is a Waldorf Astoria resort that Blackstone bought nearly six years ago for $400 million from Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC and then spent more than $150 million in renovations.

Like all of the other asset classes, hospitality has experienced a significant drop in investment sales. MSCI figures from November show sales came in at $1.3 billion or 69% less than a year ago, according to Colliers.

Volume also declined 20% from October with the number of properties sold “reminiscent of pandemic-era activity,” according to Colliers analyst Aaron Jodka.

The only property to cross the $100 million mark that month was the 196-room Hilton Brooklyn New York, which traded for $105 million, or $535,714 per room. Ohana Real Estate Investors acquired the property from Frank Inc.

However, as Bloomberg notes, sales of luxury product seem to be more active. Brookfield Asset Management sold a majority stake in the Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne to Gencom and Hyatt Hotels is in talks to sell the Park Hyatt Zurich to Trinity Investments, Bloomberg reported in December.