Hospitality Investor: Beyond trophy deals, the buyer pool is shifting

Hospitality Investor- Trophy hotel deals in the U.S. have grabbed headlines in 2026, with some of the largest hotel transactions in years changing hands.

But underneath those marquee sales, a different acquisition market is taking shape, with a shifting mix of buyers.

Interviews with hotel capital markets executives point to an acquisition market heading into the fall with plenty of capital, but uneven liquidity. Developers are increasingly turning to acquisitions as an alternative to costly new construction, trophy hotels continue to trade, and REITs are reemerging as buyers. But deal size matters: Smaller acquisitions are getting financed more efficiently, while larger transactions can still struggle to find enough buyers and capital to make the numbers pencil.

Jared Schlosser, head of credit originations and Commercial PACE for Atlanta-based private lender Peachtree Group, said the larger the hotel deal, the less liquidity there is today.

He said unlike in previous years, Peachtree has done several $100 million-plus deals in 2026 because relatively few lenders can handle transactions that size.

“There’s a limited universe that can do a hotel deal of that size,” Schlosser said.

Read the full article on hospitalityinvestor.com.