Buying Hotels Off Bad Yelp Reviews & The Boutique Hotel Brand Obituary

Podcast: This Week in Hospitality · thisweekinhospitality

Opublikowano: 2026-08-28

Hotel sales in the US are up 28% in the first half of 2026 — and a meaningful chunk of that activity is chasing bad Yelp reviews, not trophy assets. JMI Realty founder Drew Bridges joins the show to break down how his firm is using AI to source acquisition targets off terrible guest feedback. The specific deal: a Hilton Garden Inn in Austin bought for $100K per key that reviewers called "janky" and "a complete nightmare." Drew walks through the renovation math, why he's keeping the brand, and why only 184 of 789 US submarkets have outpaced CPI since 2019 — a stat that underpins his...