Hanwha Co. will sell Courtyard by Marriott Suwon, located in Gwanggyo, Suwon, Gyeonggi, to ARA Korea Asset Management.
On the 1st, according to the investment banking (IB) industry, Hanwha and ARA Korea Asset Management signed a contract to sell Courtyard by Marriott Suwon. ARA Korea Asset Management recently set up "ARA Korea Real Estate Blind Private Equity Company No. 16" to raise funds to acquire Courtyard Marriott Suwon.
The sale price is said to be in the low 100 billion won range. Given the 288-room scale, the price per room is about 300 million to 400 million won. It is viewed as a transaction made at a relatively lower price than major hotels in Seoul.
Courtyard Marriott Suwon, which opened on Jan. 1, 2020, is located in Hadong, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon, Gyeonggi. It has a total floor area of 24,033 square meters and consists of five underground floors to 21 aboveground floors. The hotel has 288 rooms, including suites.
It is close to Digital City, Samsung Electronics' headquarters, and also has high accessibility to semiconductor industrial complexes in southern Gyeonggi such as Yongin, Hwaseong and Pyeongtaek. On weekends, it is seen as having the strength of capturing leisure and tourism demand in the Gwanggyo area.
Hanwha has been pushing to sell the hotel since 2024. It reviewed the sale to secure liquidity and adjust its real estate portfolio, but the transaction was prolonged as it took time to find a suitable acquirer. With the contract signed with ARA Korea Asset Management this time, the sale has been wrapped up.
This sale is also tied to Hanwha's asset efficiency efforts. Hanwha Co. has recently been restructuring its businesses and revamping its governance structure, continuing efforts to reduce financial burdens and monetize noncore assets. Funds secured through the hotel sale are expected to be used to improve the financial structure, including repayment of borrowing fund.
With this transaction, ARA Korea Asset Management has expanded its domestic hotel portfolio. Earlier in 2024, it entered the domestic hotel market by acquiring Conrad Seoul in Yeouido for 415 billion won, followed by this second hotel investment. Based on its experience investing in and operating Conrad Seoul, it is interpreted as having expanded its investment scope to areas outside Seoul.