CBRE: Ireland sees decline in hotel transactions

The first quarter of 2017 has come to an end, and the global hotel industry is starting to get a sense of what the rest of the year has in store. 

In Ireland, the overall property market saw a mixed start to the year with almost €120 million worth of finalized transactions—but hotel activity seems to be slowing down.

According to the latest statistics from CBRE, seven hotels (including the 104-guestroom D Hotel in Drogheda and the 30-guestroom Clifton Court Hotel in Dublin) changed hands during the first three months of the year for a combined €26 million. This is down from the 14 sales that totaled €47 million during the same period last year.

The slowdown isn't very surprising, however. Lisa Keogh, associate director at CBRE Hotels Ireland, said that the decline had been anticipated. "The market is very busy behind the scenes as hotel assets are being prepared for sale and other sales processes are being conducted off-market," she told Insider Media. "However, very few hotel properties have been formally launched for sale so far this year, which is frustrating considering the weight of capital chasing opportunities at present."

Last year, CBRE reported 65 hotels sold in the country for a total of more than €800 million. For comparison, 2015 saw 63 sales for a total of €710 million.