USAA Real Estate Company acquires major interest in Doubletree Portfolio
January 15, 2004 - San Antonio, TX
An affiliate of USAA Real Estate Company ("RealCo") acquired a majority interest in a Doubletree hotel portfolio from affiliates of Wyndham International, Inc. The portfolio includes six, full-service Doubletree Hotels located in Houston, Texas; Anaheim, California; Overland Park, Kansas; Chesterfield, Missouri; and Tulsa, Oklahoma. The purchase price of the portfolio, consisting of 2,249 rooms totaling almost 1.5 million square feet, was not disclosed.
Affiliates of USAA Real Estate Company, along with an affiliate of Hilton Hotels Corporation and an affiliate of Metropolitan Life Insurance Company are the owners of the hotel portfolio.
"We see each of these properties as well-located in their respective markets and look forward to the opportunity to bring these hotels to their full potential through a significant capital improvement program that we have scheduled," said Edward B. Kelley, president and CEO of USAA Real Estate Co. "This is the first step in RealCo's proposed development of a large hotel co-investment fund that will be marketed in the very near future."
"We are looking forward to working with USAA Real Estate Company on the continued operations of these fine hotels," states Matthew J. Hart, executive vice president and CFO, Hilton Hotels Corporation.
The Doubletree portfolio will continue to be managed by DT Management, Inc., an affiliate of Hilton. Metropolitan Life serves as the lender on this transaction.
Hilton Hotels Corporation is recognized internationally as a preeminent hospitality company. The company develops, owns, manages or franchises approximately 2,100 hotels, resorts and vacation ownership properties. Its portfolio includes many of the world's best known and most highly regarded hotel brands, including Hilton®, Conrad, Doubletree®, Embassy Suites Hotels®, Hampton Inn®, Hampton Inn & Suites®, Hilton Garden Inn®, Hilton Grand Vacations Company® and Homewood Suites® by Hilton.
MetLife, a subsidiary of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), is a leading provider of insurance and other financial services to individual and institutional customers. The MetLife companies serve approximately 12 million individuals in the U.S. and provide benefits to 37 million employees and family members through their plan sponsors. Outside the U.S. , the MetLife companies have insurance operations in 10 countries serving approximately 8 million customers . For more information about MetLife, please visit the company's Web site at www.metlife.com.
USAA Real Estate Co. has more than $3.0 billion of assets under management and provides acquisition, build-to-suit and development services for corporate and institutional investors. The USAA portfolio consists of office, industrial and hotel properties as well as investments in real estate operating companies. USAA Real Estate is a subsidiary of USAA, which has been serving military families since 1922 and has become one of America 's leading financial services companies. The association, well known for its exceptional service, offers its 5 million members a comprehensive range of insurance, banking and investment products and services designed to help them meet their financial needs. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, with offices throughout the United States and Europe , USAA owns or manages assets of more than $74 billion.