Asylum seekers could be good for business
The rising number of asylum seekers could present struggling hotel owners with a guaranteed income and high profit margins, a property expert said this week.
Philip Johnston, director of hotels and leisure for FPD Savills, said that hostel accommodation for asylum seekers presented an opening for hoteliers in an uncertain market.
High profit margins were to be had because full occcupancy was guaranteed and overheads were low.
Johnson, speaking at the Hotel Values Now conference in London yesterday, added that the provision of hostel accommodation had seen a number of hoteliers through the recession in the early nineties.
Asylum seeker numbers have soared from 3,998 in 1988 to 80,315 in 2000. In June this year there were 7,100 asylum-seeking families accommodated in Greater London.