Universal Palms Hotel and Pleasant Realty’s Moshe Averbuch (Credit:Universal Palms Hotel and Pleasant Realty Inc.)
A group of New York investors just paid $13 million in an off-market deal for the Universal Palms Hotel in Oakland Park, with plans to rebrand the 195-key hotel, The Real Deal has learned.
Yeshaya Averbuch, one of the managers of the Pomona, New York-based buying entity, 4900 Powerline LLC, is also a part owner of the New York Budget Inn hostel. A spokesperson for Pleasant Realty, the brokerage representing the buyers, said the investors plan to work with hotel franchisor Choice Hotels to brand the hotel under two separate flags.
Universal Palm Hotel, at 4900 Powerline Road, sold for about $66,650 per room. Records show the seller, Universal Hotel Inc., paid $4.5 million for the property in 2011. The hotel was built 1977 on a 4.2-acre lot.
Choice Hotels is a major franchisor with nearly a dozen brands, including Quality Inn, Clarion and Comfort Suites. More than 6,500 hotels operate under its umbrella across at least 35 countries and territories, according to its website.
The deal marks the first time the New York investors enter the South Florida market. A representative for the buyers said they’re looking for additional opportunities in South Florida.
Records show the seller provided the buyers with $9.5 million in financing.
Other recent hotel investment sales in South Florida include Fillmore Capital Partners’ $24.7 million purchase of Sheraton Suites hotel in Plantation, and Ocean Properties Hotels Resorts & Affiliates’ $49 million purchase of the Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa.