Host Hotels & Resorts is raising new greenbacks to buy green properties.
The Bethesda, Maryland-based hotel owner and operator is looking to raise $650 million from new senior notes with proceeds to be used to buy LEED-certified hotels and resorts. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is one the most widely used green building rating systems in use developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.
A portion of Host Hotels' new fundraising will go toward its purchases earlier this year of the 1 Hotel South Beach in Miami Beach, Florida, and the purchase last year of Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort in Hawaii.
Another portion will go toward paying off some outstanding notes with the rest to go toward acquisition of hotel properties or renovations to existing hotels that have received or are expected to receive LEED certification, according to the Host offering circular for the new notes.
The 429-room property met the second criteria. In February, Host paid $610 million for the 1.1 million-square-foot, LEED-certified resort that reopened in 2015 following a $300 million renovation that included energy efficiency upgrades.
Separately this summer, Host raised additional proceeds through the sale of six noncore hotels that were more costly to operate.
It sold the Courtyard Chicago Downtown/River North, Residence Inn Arlington Pentagon City, Scottsdale Marriott Suites Old Town, the Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains, the Costa Mesa Marriott, the Atlanta Marriott Suites Midtown, The Westin Indianapolis, and the Chicago Marriott Suites O’Hare for net proceeds of $510 million.
“We continue to capitalize on a robust transaction market by successfully monetizing low RevPAR, high capital expenditure, non-core assets at very attractive pricing,” James F. Risoleo, president and chief executive of Host said in announcing the dispositions. “The sales proceeds further strengthen our investment grade balance sheet and enhance our ability to make strategic investments.”
