Dive Brief:
- Peachtree Group’s hotel development portfolio has exceeded $2 billion nationwide amid a challenged hospitality investment and construction environment, the commercial real estate firm announced Monday in a release obtained by Hotel Dive.
- Peachtree is focused on development in key U.S. markets including across Texas in Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. In Austin, specifically, the firm is underway on a dual-branded Embassy Suites and Tempo by Hilton hotel, representing its “most ambitious project to-date.”
- Peachtree is among the most active hotel developers in Qualified Opportunity Zones, per the release. The firm’s portfolio hit its milestone as hotel players nationwide have stalled development and renovation projects amid growing financial pressures.
Dive Insight:
Hotel development is currently challenged by “high interest rates, elevated construction costs and tighter credit conditions” that have “slowed new supply,” Will Woodworth, Peachtree’s senior vice president of investments, said in the release. “Developing hotels in today’s environment requires both conviction and capability.”
Development chiefs from Hilton, Hyatt and other hotel companies at The Lodging Conference last month said tariffs, a lack of travelers and geopolitical tensions have been a triple whammy for the hospitality industry this year.
Amid a high-cost environment and weakened demand, a significant portion of hotel owners delayed or canceled development projects this summer, an August survey from the American Hotel & Lodging Association found.
Peachtree, though, “remains bullish on hotel development, recognizing that many existing properties have been starved of capital since the pandemic and in today’s higher-rate environment,” the company said in the release.
Newer hotels are “not only better positioned to capture demand but to outperform over the long term,” Peachtree said. As a result, the firm is “scaling across markets with projects that redefine experiences for guests and value for our partners,” CEO Greg Friedman said in the release.
The firm’s largest property to open this year was the Embassy Suites Beach Resort in Gulf Shores, Alabama, with 257 all-suite guest rooms, several food and beverage options and resort-style amenities. Peachtree also opened hotels in California, Tennessee, Hawaii and Michigan this year. The firm plans to open two more hotels in 2025, including a Home2 Suites in Ashburn, Virginia, and a Tru by Hilton in Huntsville, Alabama.
In summer 2026, Peachtree expects to open the 264-key dual-branded AC and Moxy by Marriott Uptown in Dallas. The company also has four hotels under construction and three more in the pipeline in Qualified Opportunity Zones.
