Hotel Property Valuation in a Pandemic Economy: A Strategic Study of Imo Concorde Hotel Owerri in 2020

Abstract

Of all classes of real estate, the hotel property is so unique in character and structure that assigning a value becomes the most intriguing aspect of the profession of Estate Surveying and Valuation. The uniqueness of the property rests partly on its distinctive outlay as against the business potential. Incidentally, most valuations of this property rely on the propensity of the property to produce acceptable returns to pay off the cost of investment and the management. Being that as it may, the quantum of externalities that play varying roles in shaping the final value of a hotel property is such that any professional must be careful not to circumvent even the minutest of considerations. It is all too known that the value of real estate rises and falls with the character of the neighbourhood and region where it is located. Hotels values are not different and in addition rise and fall with the whim of fashion and the fortunes of the region of location. This study examined not just the different methods and approaches to the valuation of a hotel property but also explored the benefits of other micro economic parameters that play significant roles in establishing the basis of any monetary index that could be referred to as value by conducting a comprehensive review of the hotel itself in comparison with its competitive market to confirm whether the hotel is under- or over performing against its competitors the intention being to have a grasp of the income-generating ability of the property upon which the application of a capitalization rate will convert the estimated cash flows into an estimated value. Though a 5 star hotel was used as case study, the outcome is applicable to all hotels carrying on business in Nigeria and other parts of the world. The study recommends among others that Estate Surveyors and Valuers involved in the valuation of hotels need to be skilled in reading financial statements and translating them into stabilized net-operating income because as much as hotel properties are physically different, in different locations, and with different management; volatility of the hospitality market and the external factors are bound to affect value. The study revealed that in so much as the travel patterns of lodgers were affected by the Covid 19 pandemic bringing with it a crash in the income-generating potential, the value of hotels was not so affected especially with relation to furniture, fittings and equipment.