中国投资移民热衷买酒店 多为“门外汉”

Apodaca: “You can’t get their attention to look at a Kimpton hotel because there’s no Kimpton presence in China.”

网易教育讯 据美国侨报网编译报道，为了投资移民，越来越多的中国投资者将目光转向酒店业，因为只要买下一家酒店，既有了投资，也能直接创业，从而满足投资移民的条件。不过，专业人士称，中国买家对酒店业的了解并不深入。

据Globest网站报道，CBRE资本市场及CBRE酒店的高级副总裁罗德•阿波达卡（Rod Apodaca）称，购买酒店的中国买家总是对特定的市场和酒店品牌感兴趣，如果他们对一家酒店的位置和品牌不了解，他们甚至都不会考虑。

位于洛杉矶的Cox Castle Nicholson公司的合伙人格雷格•卡恩斯（Greg Karns）称，中国投资者对美国酒店业的兴趣愈发浓烈，毫无降温迹象。不过，很多中国买家直到买下资产才发现，经营一家酒店没那么容易。

“如果我能跟他们保证这家酒店配有出色的管理团队和精品品牌，但如果不能换招牌，他们就没兴趣了。”阿波达卡称，“他们对金普顿酒店（Kipton）提不起兴趣来，因为中国没有金普顿。”金普顿是一家总部位于旧金山的连锁酒店。

有些中国买家只看重那些位于旅游胜地的酒店。阿波达卡称，“著名旅游景点是他们的首选：比如迪士尼、好莱坞。我们曾跟一名客户介绍过约翰•韦恩机场，但他们对此一无所知。在详细了解后，他们仍然不太感兴趣，只因为在中国没知名度。” 约翰•韦恩机场是南加州著名机场。

阿波达卡称，中国买家投资酒店的目的迥然。“较为传统的是，有人先来打前站，了解后投资，把酒店当成一个买卖。而现在，他们寻找管理团队，重新配置酒店资源等。几年前，中国投资者了解到EB-5，于是开始找投资项目。创造就业是EB-5的一大要求，而酒店可以提供足够的工作岗位。”

阿波达卡称，在某些情况下，中国投资者会把家人送到美国，然后让他们管理酒店。“这些中国投资者来到美国，在南加州或旧金山安营扎寨。有人派子女来管理酒店，还有人会把亲朋好友拉进来做合伙人。我们的客户中好多都是这样的。”

在很多情况下，中国出资方都会要求借贷人提供专业的咨询服务，帮他们选择资产。阿波达卡称，这些被称为中国企业，尽管独立运营但仍被认为代表中国。“事实上，这和政府是有关系的，而且这样更有信誉。”

这也让其他出资方看到了好处，他们会假称代表中国买家出资。“现在很多顾问都说自己的客户是中国人，你必须仔细辨别真伪，”阿波达卡称，“如果你深究一下，就会发现他们所说的客户你也接触过。很多顾问都是自己的唯一代表，但事实并非如此。”

NEWPORT BEACH, CA-Chinese investors in hotel assets are interested in very specific submarkets and very specific brands, Rod Apodaca, SVP of CBRE Capital Markets and CBRE Hotels, tells GlobeSt.com. If they aren’t familiar with the asset’s location or brand, they are very unlikely to even consider it.

As GlobeSt.com reported last month, hotels have always been attractive to Chinese investors, and this interest shows no signs of stopping, Greg Karns, a partner with Cox Castle Nicholson in Los Angeles, told GlobeSt.com. But what many Chinese investors don’t realize until after they buy is the amount of work that goes into operating a hotel, he added.

“If I were securing them a property that had a phenomenal operator and was a boutique brand, but they couldn’t change the brand, they would have no interest,” says Apodaca. “You can’t get their attention to look at a Kimpton hotel because there’s no Kimpton presence in China.”

Some Chinese buyers will only look at hotels in tourist, activity-enriched destination locations, says Apodaca. “Well known, recognizable destinations are of primary interest: e.g. LAX, Disneyland, Hollywood. We talked to one client about the John Wayne Airport area; they had no knowledge of this market and needed to tour.  Regardless of this markets merits, it will probably be considered less desirable simply because of its lack of recognition back home.”

Apodaca adds that Chinese investor profiles for hotels vary significantly, ranging from old money to very new money. “The older money is where you had someone here in the US as a foothold, an advisor or consultant and the money coming in was opportunistic. They’re looking for the management upside, reconfiguration of the asset, etc. A few years back, you started to see EB-5 money coming in looking for development deals. The thing with EB-5 is you have to have job creation, and hotels were a great way to do that because you create many jobs—all the employees, plus all the construction workers. There are formulas out there that will expand that employment base to include vendors, third-party service providers, etc.”

In some cases, individual Chinese investors are sending over family members, including their own grown children, to oversee and manage their hotel assets, says Apodaca. “These groups are coming in, setting up homes in Southern California (e.g., Newport Coast, Arcadia, Pasadena) or San Francisco. In one incident, an investor moved his daughter here as his primary asset manager; in another case, one is moving his son here. Other Chinese friends or family may be partners in [a deal]. We are dealing directly with a number of these groups.”

In many cases, Chinese lenders are advising borrowers to use professional advisory services to help them choose assets to buy, says Apodaca. These so-called PRC corporations—which stands for People’s Republic of China—may appear to be independently operating corporations, “but the reality is that the PRC is somehow related, and when you see that, it gives greatercredibility to their ability to perform.”

It’s also evident that many parties are trying to get a piece of the Chinese investor pie by claiming to be representing Chinese buyers. “A lot of consultants will say they represent high-net-worth buyers, but you have to ferret it out,” says Apodaca. “If you drill down, it turns out it was a buyer we already had a relationship with or have a direct relationship with their primary advisor. There’s a number of consultants out there saying they have exclusives, but they don’t.”