International capital has been the determining factor in reaching this important amount, with 1,402 million euros invested, representing 64% of the total. Among this group of investors the REIT International stand out, having invested 551 million euros in 2016El capital, thus assuming the role of one of the leading companies in the dynamics of the market, a role which the SOCIMI occupied in 2015.
Last year in Spain there were a total of 147 hotel deals, involving 21, 600 rooms and investment for conversion for hotel use is also of note, rising 38.1% compared to 2015.
Geographically, in 2016, the number of zones receiving investment expanded. The four main destinations (Madrid, Barcelona, the Balearics and Canaries) attracted 68% of investment, whilst other centres such as Seville, Málaga and Valencia also grew in significance, and new areas have become the target for investment focus in recent years.
For their part, investment in buildings to convert for hotel use has reached a total of 199 million euros and has increased 38% over the previous year, equally in terms of volume as in the number of projects (199 million and 19 projects in 2016) , not counting Barcelona’s contribution as before mentioned. Last year there were 6 hotel portfolios changing hands (6,190 rooms and 57 hotels) for a total de 640 million, which is 32% of the total amount of hotel investment.
In addition to the 2,184 million euros invested in hotels, 2016 was characterised by an extraordinary appetite for buying portfolios of hotel debt. There were 4 hotel deals with a guaranteed 133 hotel assets (12,000 rooms), a record asset number for the last three years. The incorporation of new financial entities into debt activity is of interest, among them Sabadell, Banco Popular and CaixaBank.
The perspectives for 2017 are particularly positive. In view of projects already in portfolios and the predicted market context for 2017, the partner of the Hotel Division of Irea, Miguel Vázquez, considers that, “Investment next year could be around 2,000 million euros.”