Dealmaker: Sonnenblick-Eichner Arrange $35M for Downtown Seattle Hotel

Sonnenblick-Eichner Co., Beverly Hills, Calif., arranged $35 million for 76-room boutique hotel Inn at the Market in Seattle.

A Wall Street investment bank provided the non-recourse, 10-year fixed-rate loan with five years of interest-only payments.

The hotel in downtown Seattle’s Pike Place Market currently ranks first in TripAdvisor’s ranking of Seattle hotels. Its amenities include four restaurants, four high-end retail outlets and a rooftop deck with views of Elliott Bay, the Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains.

“The loan recapitalized our client’s recent all-cash purchase of a controlling interest in the ownership entity,” Sonnenblick-Eichner Principal Elliot Eichner said. “Given the location of the property adjacent to Pike Place Market, that Seattle is the fastest-growing major city in the U.S. and a recent capital investment of $126,000 per key, we were able to obtain 20 competitive financing quotes.”

The financing equaled $460,000 per key, one of the highest in Seattle to date, Sonnenblick-Eichner Principal Patrick Brown noted.

Eichner and Brown also closed another Seattle transaction, representing the seller of the 153-room Hampton Inn Southcenter. A Pacific Northwest-based investor purchased the asset in an all-cash transaction.

Located four miles east of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the Hampton Inn Seattle Southcenter has numerous corporate accounts including Boeing, American Express Travel and Home Depot.

“This is an irreplaceable asset in a strong hotel market that continues to attract both business and leisure travelers,” Eichner said.