Key International, Wexford snatch Pompano Beach Marriott for $54M

UPDATED, Dec. 2, 1:45 p.m.: In a $54 million deal, a Marriott-branded hotel in Pompano Beach traded for a second time in three years.

Miami-based Key International and West Palm Beach-based Wexford Real Estate Investors teamed up to acquire the Fort Lauderdale Marriott Pompano Beach Resort & Spa at 1200 North Ocean Boulevard, The Real Deal has learned. The acquisition breaks down to $246,575 per room for the 219-key beachfront hotel.

The oceanfront property sold for nearly $9 million above its previous sale price three years ago. The seller, a joint venture between Pan Am Equities and Big Move Properties, paid $45.1 million for the Marriott Pompano Beach in 2018, according to records.

Apex Capital Realty’s Miguel Pinto and Garrick Benabe represented the seller in the latest deal. Ovy Anghel, also with Apex, represented Key International.

The hotel was completed in 2013 by Carlyle Group and Urgo Hotels, three years after the firms acquired the site for $8.5 million.

Doug Levine, founder and CEO of Big Move Properties, told TRD that his firm and Pan Am were not marketing the Marriott Pompano Beach, but that Apex Capital approached them about Key International and Wexford Real Estate having an interest in acquiring the property.

“The buyer had a relationship with Marriott and had managed other Marriott properties,” Levine said. “We thought there was a good likelihood they would close. We shook hands and we closed.”

In a statement, Pinto said that there is great demand for “value-add hospitality investment opportunities” in South Florida as developers and investors are looking to reposition and upgrade waterfront properties. By revamping amenities and the food and beverage operations at the Marriott Pompano Beach, significant upside is possible, Pinto added.

Key International, led by by co-presidents Inigo and Diego Ardid, and Wexford Real Estate, led by President Joseph Jacobs, are planning a major renovation for the Marriott Pompano Beach that includes creating a new, resort-style pool deck and renovating the rooms as well as the on-site restaurant, according to a press release.

The two firms have a long-term partnership and have developed multiple beachfront properties. They currently own hotel properties in Panama City Beach, Jacksonville and Fort Lauderdale. Key International is a full-service real estate firm with over 30 years experience, and Wexford Real Estate, a Wexford Capital spin-off, has invested in excess of $650 million in equity in real estate deals since 2010, according to the release.

South Florida has seen other major hotel trades recently. In October, Wheelock Street Capital paid $106.4 million for The Ben West Palm Beach, a new hotel near the city’s downtown.

Last month, Menin Development picked up Crane’s Beach House Boutique Hotel & Luxury Villas in Delray Beach for $10 million. And the Finvarb Group bought The Landon Bay Harbor-Miami Beach in Bay Harbor Islands in another $10 million deal.

Also in November, Witkoff and Monroe Capital announced a massive makeover for The Shore Club in Miami Beach after acquiring the historic hotel property from HFZ Capital Group.

And in June, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust paid $270 million for the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort in Broward County, marking the year’s largest investment sale.