The only real lesson of history is that we never learn the lessons provided by history. Mitsubishi bought Rockefeller Center in 1990 for $2 billion. Sounds familiar doesn’t it? This deal marked the top of the Japanese bubble. It proceeded to burst and still hasn’t recovered after 24 years. By 1995 Rockefeller Center was bankrupt and the Japanese walked away from their investment. The Chinese real estate market has already begun to collapse. They think it is safe to buy real estate in the United States at record prices to avoid that collapse. They have been a driving force behind the cash buying of homes as investment properties. The Chinese are fools. The Waldorf Astoria will be in bankruptcy in a few years and the Chinese will be walking away from their “investment”. History will repeat, because it always does.
Hilton to sell Waldorf Astoria New York to Chinese insurer
ShutterstockHilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has agreed to sell its most prestigious hotel, Manhattan’s Waldorf Astoria, for $1.95 billion to a Chinese insurance company, the hotel operator said Monday.
The sale price is among the highest ever for any hotel and represents the latest sign of intense international demand for luxury hotels and other trophy properties in major global cities. The Waldorf Astoria’s price of $1.3 million a room is also among the highest ever paid in the U.S. on a per-room basis.
The acquisition is the first major deal in the U.S. for Anbang Insurance Group Co., which beat out at least two other bidders for the property, according to a person familiar with the matter.
For months, Hilton HLT, +1.07% has been weighing its options for the Waldorf Astoria on Park Avenue, including converting hundreds of its nearly 1,500 rooms to condos and reinvesting the proceeds into the hotel. In recent weeks, Hilton was leaning toward an outright sale of the property. But before the hotel company could begin the formal marketing process, Anbang and at least two other groups offered pre-emptive bids around the $2 billion mark, this person said.
Hilton will continue to operate the hotel under a 100-year management contract. The company plans to use the proceeds of the sale to acquire other properties, in part to avoid a hefty tax charge on the transaction.
