Commercial Observer: Peachtree Funds $32M Alabama Hotel
Peachtree Group provided a $32.36M construction loan for a 154-room AC Hotel by Marriott in Huntsville, supporting continued growth in the market.
Austin Convention Center Expansion and Hotel Growth
Austin Convention Center Expansion Signals Long-Term Hotel Demand Growth
Austin’s redevelopment of its convention center is reshaping how investors evaluate the city’s long-term hospitality outlook.
In a recent episode of Peachtree Group’s Peachtree Point of View, Greg Friedman, CEO of Peachtree Group, joined Austin Convention Center Interim Director Katy Zamesnik, Visit Austin CEO Tom Noonan, and Peachtree’s John Schellhase to discuss how infrastructure investment is expanding Austin’s future demand profile for hotels, tourism, and group business.
The conversation highlighted an important investment theme. Long-term market fundamentals are increasingly being shaped by coordinated infrastructure investment rather than short-term travel recovery trends.
What Is Driving Austin’s Convention Growth?
Austin is rebuilding and expanding its convention center by approximately 70%.
The redevelopment is designed to solve a long-standing capacity issue rather than stimulate entirely new demand.
According to Tom Noonan, Austin previously had to turn away significant convention business because the city lacked sufficient meeting space.
The new facility will allow Austin to:
- Compete with larger convention markets like Denver and Seattle.
- Host multiple large groups simultaneously.
- Reduce downtime between events.
- Increase future hotel room demand.
- Expand long-term booking visibility.
Tom Noonan noted that 40% of the business already booked into the future facility could not fit into the old building.
That distinction demonstrates that demand already exists.
Why Convention Centers Matter for Hotel Investors
Convention centers play an important role in hospitality market performance because they create recurring group demand that supports:
- Hotel occupancy
- Average daily rate growth (ADR)
- Food and beverage spending
- Weekday business travel
- Higher occupancy and pricing power during major events
When convention capacity expands, nearby hotels often benefit from increased room demand and longer booking visibility.
Austin’s redevelopment may be particularly impactful because it coincides with several additional infrastructure projects.
Austin’s Broader Infrastructure Expansion
The convention center is only one part of Austin’s growth story.
The episode highlighted several additional investments shaping the market:
Airport Expansion
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is adding 32 gates, increasing future passenger capacity and improving convention accessibility.
Transit Connectivity
Future rail connectivity is expected to provide direct transportation between the airport and downtown Austin.
Entertainment and Sports Demand
Austin continues to benefit from:
- Formula 1 events
- South by Southwest
- Austin City Limits
- SEC football tourism
- Live entertainment growth
- Technology sector expansion
These demand drivers help diversify the city’s hospitality economy beyond conventions alone.
3 Key Takeaways for Investors
1. Austin’s growth is infrastructure-led
The city is investing heavily in transportation, entertainment, and convention capacity simultaneously.
2. Demand constraints previously limited growth
Austin’s issue was not insufficient demand. There is insufficient capacity.
3. Long-term booking visibility supports underwriting confidence
Convention bookings extending into the 2030s improve future demand predictability for hospitality assets.
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2026 Market Insights
Peachtree Group's leadership team is actively shaping the conversation across commercial real estate and private credit, providing perspective on a market defined by capital constraints, refinancing pressure and emerging opportunity.
What changes do you expect to see in the commercial real estate market in 2026?
Greg Friedman | Managing Principal & CEO
“It’s an inflection point… you’re going to start seeing assets trade… it’s not an issue with the fundamentals at the asset level, it’s more of an issue of broken balance sheets.”
What has been the key to the firm’s ability to succeed across different market cycles?
Jatin Desai | Managing Principal & CFO
“We’ve had to be very agile to pivot through all these various things… that’s what’s helped us find good opportunities by not being so set in being just a developer, operator or owner… and pivoting and finding the right partner really made a difference for us to do what we wanted to do, but also grow beyond that.”
How does Peachtree Group approach capital structuring for complex historic redevelopment projects?
Jared Schlosser | Head of Credit Originations and Commercial PACE
“Projects like this require thoughtful structuring given the complexity of historic redevelopment and construction completion… that complexity is exactly why sponsors seek lending partners with the experience and balance sheet to structure capital solutions and help move projects forward.”
How are deferred capital expenditures impacting the hotel sector today?
Michael Ritz | EVP Investments
“That capex doesn’t go away… brands need reinvestment to protect guest experience. But many owners simply can’t fund it.”
What does it take to successfully develop hotels in today’s market environment?
Will Woodworth | SVP, Investments
“Developing hotels in today’s environment requires both conviction and capability… our vertically integrated platform and access to capital allow us to partner with best-in-class brands to deliver properties on-time and on-budget that will elevate the markets in which we build.”
What are hotel borrowers looking for in lending partners today?
Daniel Siegel | President and Principal CRE, Credit
“With banks pulling back and refinancing risk rising across the market, demand for experienced private lenders has accelerated… borrowers are not just looking for capital. They are looking for partners who understand assets, cash flow and downside risk.”
How is EB-5 financing supporting development projects?
Adam Greene | EVP, EB-5
“In this case and in many cases where Peachtree implements EB-5, having that funding source from these foreign investors allows us to give developers a slightly better deal than they might otherwise get from traditional sources… it’s a really worthy development tool.”
Grind to ’29: Opportunity in CRE’s Capital Reset
Over the last three years, commercial real estate has gone through the painful part of the cycle. Values reset, transactions slowed, lenders pulled back and many owners shifted from growth to defense. That was Survive to ’25. Now the market has moved into something different, or what we refer to as Grind to ’29.
This next phase will not be driven by falling rates. It will be an extended period in which outcomes are shaped by capital stack adjustments, underwriting discipline and the ability to move when others cannot.
The economic backdrop is stable but fragile. Headline data still appears durable, yet growth is increasingly uneven. A narrow set of AI-driven investments has carried much of the expansion, while broader private investment is slowing. At the same time, policy uncertainty has become a headwind in its own right.
For us, rates matter most at the long end of the curve. We are focused on the 10-year Treasury as the anchor for cap rates and permanent capital. Even in our current range-bound 10-year, while higher, it is still constructive, as it provides some stability. Even if the Fed eases modestly on the short end, underwriting will need to stand on fundamentals rather than multiple expansion.
That is why our strategy is centered on credit and special situations. At three-plus-trillion-dollar wall of maturities is colliding with a challenging refinancing market. Regional banks, historically a primary source of commercial real estate lending, are prioritizing their balance sheet over new originations.
The result is a meaningful gap in the capital markets. While lending spreads have compressed modestly in favored sectors such as multifamily and industrial, the gap between sectors remains wide, reinforcing the importance of selectivity and disciplined structure.
We are originating loans that banks would have written in prior cycles, but at a stronger basis following the valuation reset. At the same time, an increasing number of institutions are choosing to sell loans rather than extend them or push borrowers into refinancing. That shift is expanding activity in the secondary market as banks seek liquidity. The combination of selective originations and discounted loan purchases broadens our entry points rather than narrows them.
The prolonged period of “extend and pretend” did not resolve leverage risk. It deferred it. Today, there is a growing inventory of assets with capital structures that no longer reflect current rates or values. Many properties are operationally sound yet over-levered, and partnerships are feeling pressure as maturities approach without straight forward refinancing solutions.
We believe 2026 will be an inflection year for many commercial real estate owners. Decisions that were postponed must now be made. Owners will transact, contribute significant new equity, accept higher-cost capital through preferred equity or structured senior debt, or, in some cases, return assets to lenders.
The process is unlikely to be orderly. It is likely to be complex and uneven. For disciplined capital providers, that complexity creates attractive entry points. In this part of the cycle, it is less about broken real estate and more about broken capital stacks. That is where dislocation lives.
The common thread across everything we are doing is consistent. We prioritize basis, maintain disciplined structure and build in downside protection. The next leg of commercial real estate will reward patience, execution and the ability to provide solutions rather than predictions.
That is what Grind to ’29 means for us as we steadily build value while others wait.
Fresh Powder in a Dislocated Market
Fresh Powder in a Dislocated Market: Peachtree’s Equipment Finance Strategy
Equipment Finance Advisor | In the wake of the financial crisis, few corners of finance were untouched. Roger Johnson, Executive Vice President and Principal of Peachtree Group’s newly formed Equipment Finance division, remembers it vividly.
“I joined Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), where the focus was on publicly traded banks,” said Johnson. “The platform was bought and sold wholesale loans to help banks balance their portfolios. Then the 2008 financial crisis happened. So, we ended up becoming the ‘garbage truck’ for the FDIC and a number of other clients.”
Over a four-year period, Johnson and his colleagues sold roughly $10.5 billion of problem loans. It was during that time he became acquainted with Greg Friedman and Jatin Desai, who were just launching what would become one of the more dynamic alternative investment platforms in commercial real estate.
Today, Peachtree Group manages approximately $10 billion in assets and has evolved far beyond its hospitality roots. Now, it is placing a strategic bet on equipment finance as the next leg of growth.
Read Full Article on www.equipmentfa.com
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