Positive signs of recovery in UK hotel transactions

The sale of UK hotels are showing a positive sign of recovery with the announcement of a 28% increase in transactions in the 12 months to July 2013, according to property company Colliers International.

Julian Troup, head of Colliers International Hotels Agency said that there had been a growth in demand from private and corporate buyers looking to invest in UK hotels, with the company selling 91 hotels, with a combined value of more than £150m, in the year from August 2012 to July 2013.

"There are reasons for real optimism in terms of the transactional activity taking place in the UK hotel market - contrary to the belief of some," he explained, stressing that there has been an uplift in interest in the more keenly price provincial hotel market compared to London, where properties are a premium.

"We are currently marketing the sale of Oakley Court Hotel, Windsor where we have been inundated with domestic and international interest and it is clear there remains a significant demand for quality assets and locations.

"There is also more evidence of private buyers being able to sell their house releasing them to look more seriously at buying a hotel or guest house - we are experiencing strong demand from buyers looking in the hot spots of the Lake District, the Cotswolds, the North Yorkshire Dales and Moors, New Forest and other National Parks throughout the UK."

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