Last October's mass shooting in Las Vegas has had a negative impact on MGM Resorts' profits and will likely continue to do so for some time. But let's not forget that it also took the lives of 58 people and seriously injured hundreds more. This legal maneuvering by MGM is rightfully earning the company outrage in the public sphere.

A panel on dual-branded hotels at the 2018 ALIS Summer Update in Atlanta spoke about all of the factors that go into developing dual-branded properties, focusing on what works and explaining the risks.

PMZ Realty Capital, a national boutique real estate investment banking firm, closed a $32-million, fixed-rate loan to refinance a three-property portfolio in Georgia.

RLH Corporation sold Washington's Hotel RL Spokane at the Park for $35 million. The hotel is the ninth of 11 hotels being marketed for sale previously disclosed in October 2017. RLH Corporation’s total gain on the sale is expected to be approximately $14.8 million. Together with the other eight previously announced sales, RLH Corporation’s gain on sales is approximately $42.2 million.

Prop 13 limited local property taxes to 1 percent of purchase price (or of the assessed value in 1975) and capped subsequent increases at 2 percent a year.

One of the biggest and most widespread misconceptions in the hotel industry is that discounting is the best way to boost direct bookings. Even though this has been proven over and over again to be untrue, many hoteliers still insist that it’s the fastest way to profitability and that it helps a property lower the cost of acquisition and increase occupancy.

Through the first six months of 2018, the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index is down 0.5%.

A panel of hotel financing experts at the ALIS Summer Update in Atlanta share why lenders continue to be cautious about new hotel construction despite the industry performing well.

RLH Corporation (NYSE:RLH) announced today the sale of Red Lion Hotel Port Angeles, for $19.5 million. The hotel is the eighth of 11 hotels being marketed for sale previously disclosed in October 2017. Red Lion Hotel Port Angeles, along with all other sold hotels, has signed a franchise license agreement to retain their Red Lion brand.

Its millions of international travelers aside, China's many investments in the U.S. travel industry have left it at an impasse in the trade war and, for now, with America having the upper hand.

On July 10, approximately 300 revenue managers, owners, operators, and other hotel professionals met at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. for the sixth annual Revenue Strategy Summit. Co-hosted by Duetto, Kalibri Labs, and Silver Hospitality Group, the one-day conference offered attendees a deep dive into revenue management and strategies, pulling in experts from all areas of the industry to discuss everything from new technologies disrupting the hospitality revenue space to the overall financial health of the lodging industry.

American Hotel Register Company is now a certified women-owned business. Technically, the majority of American Hotel has been women-owned for the last few years (54% of the company’s current ownership is female); however, the hospitality supplier felt the need to take the next step.

Arriba Capital recently closed a $17-million conventional loan for the Tundra Lodge in Green Bay, Wis. Included in the deal is an attached 30,000-square-foot water park, as well as 162 guestrooms and more than 17,500 square feet of function space spread throughout three ballrooms and 11 additional meeting rooms.

U.S. consumer prices ticked up, barely, last month according to the Labor Department’s Consumer Price Index, which rose 0.1%. However, the department said the CPI was up 2.9% for the 12 months ended June, the biggest gain since February 2012.

The Holiday Inn & Suites Phoenix-Mesa/Chandler at 1600 S. Country Cub Dr. in Mesa, Ariz., has been sold to a Canadian investor for $13.1 million. The Manitoba-based investor, developer and hospitality management company plans to renovate and add mixed-use elements to the existing hotel property.

When Wyndham Worldwide agreed to acquire La Quinta Holdings, Inc. earlier this year for $1.95 billion it represented the largest transaction the lodging industry has seen in quite some time, not to mention the most significant deal ever for the 30-year-old brand behemoth.

The inconsistent U.S. policy towards Cuba has reduced crowds and forced operators to develop more creative tours for Americans who still want to visit. Now may not be a bad time to take the plunge and visit one of the most interesting destinations in North America.

The hotel industry has faced many challenges in the past few years: a shortage of available workers, increased competition from home-sharing rental sites and changing demands from consumers. But one of the biggest challenges has been from the barrage of new local and state laws (increases in minimum wages, scheduling requirements, ban the box, paid sick leave, etc.) that have forced substantial changes in pricing, operations and administration to accommodate these rules.

Spending habits are hard to break, even if you’re a treasury and finance professional. A new survey from the Association for Financial Professionals shows that, despite the U.S. corporate tax cuts, 40% of respondents anticipate no change in the level of spending at their organizations. One reason: they’re uncertain about some of the provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Iowa-based firm Hawkeye Hotels in a joint venture with Georgia-based HOS Management (HOS) recently completed the acquisition of Hotel Indigo in downtown Fort Myers, Florida, for an undisclosed sum.

I was at a blockchain event last night when a Beijing-based investor let loose a rant on how this Internet world of centralisation was creating monopolies especially in travel where OTAs were completely dominating the market and there was now no room for new startups in travel that could scale well and successfully.

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust has filed a preliminary proxy statement with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to urge shareholders of LaSalle Hotel Properties to vote with Pebblebrook against LaSalle’s merger agreement with BRE Landmark LP (BRE), an affiliate of The Blackstone Group LP, at a price of $33.50 per share.

In a report entitled Technopoly, experts from the think tank ResPublica call on officials in the UK and Europe to stem what they describe as the growing digital monopolies of technology companies such as Facebook and Google.

NHotel Business is tracking transactions in the hospitality industry. This week, HFF has arranged financing for the development of a mixed-use project in Mountain View, CA; Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of the Hotel Indigo in Fort Myers, FL; and Booking Holdings has acquired a hotel metasearch site.

Consumer borrowing grew in May at the fastest pace in a year and a half, driven by a particularly large increase in revolving credit. The U.S. Federal Reserve said rose $24.5 billion in May after an increase of $10 billion the previous month. It was the biggest monthly gain since a rise of $24.8 billion in November 2016.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) has developed a new interactive training programme to help ensure Dubai’s hospitality sector continues to maintain global price competitiveness, while improving the emirate’s overall occupancy levels, RevPAR and ADR.