Vancouver hotels are seeing a nation-leading 77 per cent occupancy rate and the room demand translates into record-level and accelerating prices for hotel properties.
A report from industry consultancy HVS International notes that the REVPAR (revenue per available room) in Vancouver hotels is now at a record-breaking $156.84. However, this pales in comparison to the per-key price hotels are selling for. In 2014, Vancouver hotels sold for an average of $190,802 per room. This year’s sales are forecast to hit $230,342 per room and rise to $243,327 per room in 2016 and to $262,230 by 2018 “the highest ever for any market in Canada,” according to Carrie Russell, managing director of HVS Canada.
Hotel room prices are already eclipsing the average paid per-suite for apartment buildings in Metro Vancouver. Based on 26 transactions through the first half of this year, the average Metro apartment building sold for $173,620 per door, according to Avison Young.
“Vancouver, at 77 per cent, is maxing out what it can do in terms of seasonal occupancy levels,” Russell said. “There will be a little bit of a new supply increase with the Trump opening, so we’re forecasting occupancy at 76% for the market next year, and then a 7 per cent increase in the average room rate.”
The Trump International Hotel is expected to open in downtown Vancouver in 2016.
