STR reports U.S. hotel Pipeline for July 2008
The U.S. hotel development pipeline includes 5,943 hotels with 660,928 rooms according to the July STR/TWR/Dodge Construction Pipeline Report released this week. This represents a 0.5-percent decrease in rooms over June and an 18.1-percent increase over July 2007. Of the total pipeline, 200,604 rooms are not currently affiliated with a brand or chain.
HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. —The U.S. hotel development pipeline includes 5,943 hotels with 660,928 rooms according to the July STR/TWR/Dodge Construction Pipeline Report released this week. This represents a 0.5-percent decrease in rooms over June and an 18.1-percent increase over July 2007. Of the total pipeline, 200,604 rooms are not currently affiliated with a brand or chain.
“The current credit scenario has made it harder to break ground on new hotel projects. We have seen a ‘bubble’ of projects forming in the Final Planning stage over the course of the year.” commented Duane Vinson, vice president of Smith Travel Research. “It is still unclear if those projects will be built or if they will be abandoned.”
At the close of July, the number of rooms in the pipeline for each STR Chain Scale is as follows:
U.S. Pipeline by Chain Scale
Number of Rooms & Percent Change (July 2008 vs. July 2007)
“In a difficult demand environment, a slowdown in the mid to long term construction pipeline will pay dividends for the hotel industry in 2009 and 2010. It now seems clear the industry will avoid the huge supply surge that accompanied the last two building cycles,” added Mark Lomanno, president of Smith Travel Research.