Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JULY 27, 2026 19 FOCUS | HOSPITALIT Y as a patent attorney before earning an MBA and helping launch a cannabis dispensary business in Massachu- setts. After selling his ownership stake in the cannabis company in 2024 amid concerns about market saturation, he partnered with Keni Patel to pursue hotel investments. Anand said an accountant encouraged him to reinvest in real estate because of its long-term tax advantages. Data-driven approach Keni Patel said his generation of Indian American hotel owners is approaching the business differently than their parents did. The first generation was often content to buy a budget motel, pay off the debt and build long-term financial security for their families. Today, younger owners are applying technological know-how as they invest in higher-tier brands and larger portfolios, he said. "Hotels are one of the real estate asset classes that are the most rich in data," he said. "There's data coming in literally daily. I can compare my performance every week against competitors. I grew up thinking it was a business you operated by gut. In some aspects it is, but it is very, very data driven." Keni said that analytical approach helped convince him to pursue the Danbury Holiday Inn Express after spending roughly a year evaluating acquisition opportunities. The hotel had recently undergone a multimillion-dollar renovation, eliminating the need for major capital improvements. With construction costs elevated, Keni calculated the purchase price was at least 20% below the cost of building a comparable hotel in the area. He also believed more hands-on management could reduce operating expenses while improving guest service. The generational shift also extends to how acquisitions are financed. Keni said first-generation Indian American hotel owners often relied on informal loans from relatives and friends to finance deals. "It was all just handshake loans," Patel said. "You know that if you don't pay back your debts, then your name in the community is ruined." Today, Keni said he raises equity from family and friends who invest alongside him in hotel acquisitions. Building a portfolio The Danbury acquisition is just the beginning of the partners' long-term plans. They said they are already searching for additional deals, primarily in Connecticut but potentially elsewhere along the East Coast. They prefer to remain in the Northeast, where they can oversee operations directly, although they are open to using third- party management companies for properties farther away. Their long-term goal is to own at least 10 hotels. "We're trying to build … a proper platform," Keni Patel said. "Think like a small private equity company." Keni said he isn't sure if his daugh- ters will eventually enter the hotel industry, but he wouldn't be surprised if they did. After years of insisting he wanted nothing to do with the business, his own return to hospitality came as no shock to his parents. "My parents said they always knew I would do it," Keni said. Anand Patel (left) and Keni Patel say they hope the Danbury Holiday Inn Express & Suites will be the first of at least 10 hotels in their investment portfolio. HBJ Photo | Steve Laschever CT hotel sales rebound as investors return to market Gaurang "Gary" Patel inside the dual Marriott-branded hotel his Kautilya Group recently redeveloped in East Hartford. HBJ Photo | Michael Puffer Continued on next page By Michael Puffer mpuffer@hartfordbusiness.com C onnecticut's hotel invest- ment market has regained momentum after two sluggish years in 2023 and 2024. Brokers and market analysts say improving hotel performance, the need to address deferred renovation projects and changing market condi- tions have helped revive deal activity. Hotel sales are increasing nationwide as investors adapt to today's higher borrowing costs rather than waiting for interest rates to fall, said Didio Pequeno, director of hospitality market analytics for commercial real estate data and analytics firm CoStar Group. Jerry Swon, senior managing director of investments and senior director of Marcus & Millichap's National Hospitality Group, said rising interest rates temporarily stalled sales activity by widening the gap between what buyers were willing to pay and what sellers expected to receive. As the market adjusted, sellers lowered their price expectations while buyers accepted the reality of higher borrowing costs. "People have been sitting on the sidelines and have had money that they've needed to deploy," Swon said. "Transactions are happening again." Dip and bounce Connecticut hotel sales slumped during the pandemic as occupancy and revenue fell sharply. In 2019, 26 hotel properties traded hands, while average revenue per available room (RevPAR) reached $73.19 statewide, according to CoStar Group. There were only 17 sales in 2020, at the height of the pandemic, as RevPAR dropped to $36.86. Hotel sales rebounded to 35 deals in both 2021 and 2022 before slowing to 21 in 2023 and 16 in 2024 as higher borrowing costs curtailed investment activity. Sales recovered to 29 deals in 2025 and are on pace for another strong year in 2026. Measured by dollar volume, the rebound has been even more dramatic. Through the first half of 2026, Connecticut hotel sales totaled about $125 million, roughly double the $62 million recorded during the same period a year earlier, according to CoStar. The $38 million sale of the Mayflower Inn & Spa in Washington, along with several other upscale hotel deals, helped drive the increase in dollar volume, Pequeno said. Another factor behind the increase in deal activity is a wave of renovations Connecticut hotel market trends *2026 deal activity is through the first six months of the year. | Source: CoStar Group YEAR HOTEL SALES AVERAGE DAILY RATE REVENUE PER AVAILABLE ROOM 2019 26 $120.39 $73.19 2020 17 $97.65 $36.86 2021 35 $116.75 $62.80 2022 35 $140.11 $83.01 2023 21 $148.46 $88.36 2024 16 $152.12 $91.68 2025 29 $156.40 $96.06 2026* 12 $155.23 $93.65

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