14 Oct 23 Rising hotel rates and falling inflation: good news for apartment owners 

According to Hotel Monitor 2024 Powered by Amex GBT Consulting, hotel room rates in Europe are projected to increase by double-digit percentages in 2024 providing a welcome boost for serviced apartment owners.

The report forecasts specific rate increases in key European destinations:

  • Munich +7.2%
  • Amsterdam +10.8%
  • Brussels +6.2%
  • Dublin +10.0%
  • London +9.1%

Real estate traditionally acts as a hedge during periods of high inflation as the real estate asset holds its value and rental income can be indexed with inflation.

As costs rise for hotels or serviced apartments, the operator passes on the costs to paying tourists in the form of higher overnight rates creating an inflation-proof model.

Another important factor in the higher prices is the surge in post-pandemic travel thanks to pent-up demand.  According to Tirol Werbung, in the months from May to the end of September, guest arrivals in Tyrol increased by 5.9 percent to 5.7 million, and overnight stays increased by 1.6 percent to 20.5 million.

This coupled with the imbalance between supply and demand for hotel rooms (developers have not been building enough rooms in the last two years) is pushing up the prices on a global scale.

Keith Barr, CEO of IHG Hotels and Resorts, offers his perspective: “We had robust supply growth over an extended period of time, which did keep rates down. It’s just going to support pricing being where it should have been over time, which is great for this industry.”

In Austria, we are also achieving higher rates on our 2024 bookings.

A professional serviced apartment operator like All-Suite Resorts https://www.all-suite.com/ uses yield marketing software by https://hotelpartner-ym.com/ to adjust its overnight rates every 4 minutes to get the highest yield for apartment owners.

As an example, All-Suite Resorts monitors market data and keeps overnight prices high for key Winter season weeks in the knowledge that supply for rooms in a given location will start to fall and prices rise accordingly.

In other words, they achieve a higher price by not selling out too quickly.

Meanwhile, inflation in the Eurozone after peaking at 10.6% has been on the decline over the past year.

In Germany, the annual inflation rate plunged to 4.3% in September from 6.4% in August.

“This likely is the beginning of an accelerated decline” in eurozone inflation, said Claus Vistesen, the chief Eurozone economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

So, in summary, it’s a good time to invest in Tirol thanks to falling inflation and rising overnight prices – plus the shortage of hotel rooms thanks to low levels of development in the last 48 months.

Here some other important benefits to consider:

  • Before the pandemic, serviced apartments were the fastest growing accommodation category in Austria with an 18% increase in bookings in Winter 2018 (source: Urlaub in Ferienwohnungen boomt https://tirol.orf.at/news/stories/2904521/)
  • Serviced apartments outperformed hotels during a pandemic thanks to well-spaced, self-contained apartments where tourists can arrive in their own car, have the flexibility to cook and avoid communal areas
  • Tirol is one the least densely populated areas in Europe with 59 people per square kilometre versus Germany 232, Netherlands 521, England (UK) 424, Belgium 376, Czech Republic 135
  • The Summer tourism business is growing fast even in high altitude resorts
  • Tourists are lowering their CO2 footprint and choosing closer destinations
  • For the apartment owner, there is capital growth in the mid-term
  • WFH: more families are spending time in the mountains and skiing when the weather is perfect and working back in the apartment when necessary
  • Lifestyle investment: owners can earn up to 4% per annum but also have healthy holidays with family and friends.

Please Contact us today to find out more about our inflation-proof property investments.

The Telegraph: “Why we should all be more Austrian about autumn”.

In the Tyrol, September is about embracing the last of the long days and drinking good wine

Autumn might be fast approaching, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to batten down the hatches and head indoors just yet – particularly not if you opt for a short break in Austria, where at this time of year everyone is up in the mountains hiking, mountain biking and, of course, foraging.

And there are myriad reasons to do just that. Austria does autumn colour extremely well (it’s not all pine forests in the Alps), and there are nuts, berries, herbs and, most prized of all at this time of year, mushrooms.

PDF 230919 Why Tyrol is the best Austrian state to visit this autumn

Tyrol in Austria is home to stunning natural landscapes that are well worth a visit, particularly in autumn CREDIT: Alamy Stock Photo

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/austria/why-tyrol-is-the-best-austrian-state-to-visit-this-autumn/

Easter site visits in Austrian Alps

Lots of snow will be falling in the Austrian Alps in the next 10 days so if you are skiing then why not get in contact to see some of our projects and completed apartments?

If you are a non-EU citizen then we can still help you to buy and get finance.  Here is a summary of our properties:

SKI-IN & OUT LOCATIONS

Kühtai: Austria’s highest ski village (2,020m). Prices start at 248,000EUR + 3% buyers’ fees for a studio apartment with stunning South-facing views. These apartments have been completed. Projected immediate return between 3.6% and 4.1%.

Kirchberg / Kitzbühel: ski-in is often possible within 150m of apartments. 2 top restaurants operated by Simon Taxacher, one of the best chefs in Austria. Prices from 329.000€.  Attractive return prospects: 3.7% to 4.9% (from the 3rd year of operation).

Hinterstoder: prices from €376.784. Non-EU nationals can buy as a natural person here.  Approximately 4% total capital return per annum rising to 7,5% over 20 years due to revenue based return model.

OTHER COMPLETED APARTMENTS

Galtür / Ischgl: 4 apartments left (two 2-bed and two 3-bed).  Average 4% return over 10 years.  Click for an example of a 3D tour

St Anton: 3 resale apartments from 799,000 with the option to handle the rental business yourself.

Ötztal: 1 apartment for resale for 559,000EUR (apartment and storage in basement) + 30,000EUR for 1 underground parking space Net. Buyer fees 3% of the gross sales price.

Off-market hotels: we have a growing portfolio of hotels which are for resale ranging in price from 1m to 20m. All enquiries are handled very discreetly.

COMING SOON

If you are interested in Seefeld / Leutasch and Berwang then contact us and we can share some information on apartments in these locations.

Helene Atterbury – Property Consultant +43 676 962 7712

info@kristall-spaces.com 

20 December: site visits of our apartments this Winter

If you are travelling to Tirol this Winter season, then please get in contact so we can arrange a site visit of our finished apartments or future project locations.

Site visits are normally easier to arrange between 1000 and 1600 when apartments are being cleaned for new guests.

Otherwise, we can usually arrange access to the apartments during the week when the guests are skiing between 1000 and 1200 or 1400 and 1600.

Property for sale in Fieberbrunn – 4 unsold, completed apartments and we are offering a 3% fixed return in first year.

Property for sale in Ischgl – 5 unsold, completed apartments.  Spectacular views.   Outdoor panorama pool, spa and restaurant onsite.

Property for sale in St Anton – 2 completed apartments for resale.  Award-winning ski-out apartments.   Some of the best views in the valley.

Property for sale in Zell am See – 1 completed apartment for resale. In the centre of Zell am See. 150 metres to the City Express gondola.

Ötztal – 1 apartment for resale. Dual season apartments with 2 swimming pools. 100 metres to the ski lift.   25 minutes from Innsbruck airport.

We look forward to hearing from you over the Holidays!

Demand for holiday hotels in Alps unbroken

English summary of an article on the hotel and serviced apartments buiness in Austria.

https://www.tourismuspresse.at/presseaussendung/TPT_20220913_TPT0001/investoren-setzen-weiter-auf-berghotels

 Vienna (OTS) – The demand for holiday hotels in the Alps is unbroken (Die Nachfrage nach Ferienhotels in den Alpen ist ungebrochen)

Many conversion and new construction projects are in the pipeline. At the same time, the industry is confronted with new challenges.

Despite difficult conditions (energy crisis, corona) and other adversities (high construction costs, rising interest rates), domestic hoteliers and hotel developers remain optimistic for 2023.

New concepts and developments are being planned and implemented.   Project developers expect only modest growth for urban areas, which is why they are increasingly looking for favourable opportunities in the Alps.

Experts from the Prodinger company, who look after around 500 hotel businesses in the areas of tax advice, tourism advice and business advice, can confirm that the holiday hotel industry is doing relatively well despite the difficult starting position before the 2022/23 winter season.

However, businesses in top locations that are suitable for new developments are few and far between in the leading holiday regions.  Building permits and ongoing changes make new construction projects difficult.  The space efficiency suffers from high construction costs and a lack of employees.  Another challenge is the fact that financing and subsidies will be based on real estate efficiency in the future.  There will be a change in restaurants and food concepts in the holiday hotel industry. The good old 4-course half-board has an expiry date.  This makes new restaurants necessary.

In many classic holiday hotels, people are considering reducing the service and switching to serviced apartments. 

Investment and capital intensive

 A twenty-year comparison shows that hotels made large investments by the end of 2020.   Operating performance (GOP) lagged over the same period.  The new buildings and conversions, which continued during the Corona period, can be explained on the one hand by the investment bonus and on the other hand by the long project lead time.

Hotel revitalization

 A trend that is likely to intensify next year is the revitalization and reorientation of existing properties in the holiday hotel industry.

A good example of one of these concepts is the TRIFORÊT alpin.resort in Hinterstoder, which will open on December 1, 2023 and will be managed by the hotel operator arcona Hotels & Resorts. It is based on a 365-day concept.

The old stock comes from the Berghotel Hinterstoder from the 1960s.

Due to an investment backlog, this had reached the end of its product life cycle, so that a complete revitalization became unavoidable.

“Use instead of possession”

 There will be further exciting project developments in 2023 under the motto ” use instead of ownership “.   The well-known problem of leisure and second home ownership is leading to a boom in the temporary use of alpine real estate. ” The hospitality sector will play a bigger role here, “ says Thomas Reisenzahn, MD of the Prodinger consulting group.

New forms such as “Best Ager Hotels” for the young at heart in the third phase of life are also taking hold in holiday regions.  New forms associated with investment opportunities.

Alternative forms of accommodation such as tiny houses, glamping, tree houses or chalets will continue to gain in importance in 2023 and expand the tourist offer in holiday regions.

Jan 22: high demand for serviced apartments

Some recent articles from Gewinn and the Tiroler Tagezeitung on the Austrian property market in general, and news on the “Serviced Apartment” sector in Tirol specifically (to be clear, these are dual-season, buy-to-let, ski apartments which are rented to tourists throughout the year).  

          

Skiurlaub mit Rendite Dezember 2022

Summary overview: 

We are experiencing high demand from EU buyers, especially from the German-speaking and Benelux countries;

Austrians have become aware of the great opportunities to invest in their country’s tourism sector;

Thanks to strategic planning laws and restrictions on development, pent up demand for ski apartments is outweighing supply which in turn is supporting the current trend in strong capital growth – average house prices rose 12.9% year-on-year across Austria in 2021;

Experienced investors are seeking second and third properties in the Alps during the current inflation surge;

Real estate traditionally acts as a hedge during periods of high inflation, as the real asset holds its value, and rental income is indexed with inflation;

When rented out fully to the tourism market, our self-catering ski apartments can deliver an average 4% annual return over 10 years on rental performance alone and the general view is that this is the last Winter of disruption as major skiing markets in Europe exit the pandemic.

Kristall Spaces is currently offering 4 completed apartments in Fieberbrunn and 14 apartments in Ischgl which will be completed in October 2022. 

Further projects will be announced in Q2 2022.

Serviced apartments 20% higher occupancy than hotels

The serviced apartment segment proved its resilience during the pandemic according to a recently published market report “Serviced Apartments 2021” (Source: https://www.ahgz.de/).

The 2020 occupancy rates for serviced apartments were at least 19% higher than the hotel sector and 28% higher in April 2020.

According to the current planning status, the serviced apartment segment will grow by 48% by the end of 2023.

Other news:

Our operator all-suite.com is getting lots of bookings for July and August and even into September as the number of new infections has fallen in Germany (19.9 per 100,000) and Austria (24 per 100,000).

There has also been another lifting of restrictions in Austria:

  • The curfew has moved from 2200 to midnight
  • 8 adults can meet indoors and 16 outdoors
  • Social distancing is now 1 metre instead of 2 metres
  • Cultural venues can now allow 75% occupancy instead of 50%
  • You no longer have to wear a mask outdoors

Austria and the rest of the EU are working on producing a Digital Covid Certificate which will become valid from 1 July.

Tirol is one the least densely populated areas in Europe with 59 people per square kilometre versus Germany 232, Netherlands 521, England (UK) 424, Belgium 376, Czech Republic 135.

And our serviced apartment model provides extra safety during these times.

Come and stay in a well-spaced, self-contained apartment where you can arrive in your own car, you have the flexibility to cook for yourself and there are fewer communal areas compared to the old-fashioned 3 and 4-star family-run hotels.

Austria to vaccinate every adult in next 100 days

Austria is performing well in its vaccination programme when compared to other European states.

According to the Statista website https://www.statista.com/statistics/1196071/covid-19-vaccination-rate-in-europe-by-country/ , Austria is in 9th place in Europe with 19.5 percent of its population having been given at least one dose, just behind Denmark which is at 20 percent.

One reason is probably that it has not stopped using the AstraZeneca vaccine for certain age groups.

Last week Chancellor Sebastian Kurz promised every adult in Austria who wants to be vaccinated against the coronavirus will be given the opportunity in the next 100 days.

Kurz also said sport, restaurants and hotels will be able to open again in May, after over 65s are vaccinated.

In May all over 50-year-olds should be jabbed, and in June vaccination is to be opened to all age groups. (source: thelocal.at).

Welcome news for the tourism industry and the forthcoming Summer season.

Our operator all-suite.com is expecting a very busy July, August and September.

June could also start to get busy and in October they are expecting good business from the hiking tourists in Oetz and Fieberbrunn where the lifts run from 13 May to 26 October.

More and more tourists now prefer to stay in a well-spaced, self-contained apartment where they have the flexibility to cook instead of the old-fashioned 3 and 4-star family-run hotels which run the standard half-board service model in a riskier environment with more communal areas.

At Kristall Spaces, we are arranging meetings next week with property buyers from Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK who are travelling for business purposes right now to invest in a property that supports tourism.

Please contact us today to arrange your property viewing in person or remotely via video.

11 January: visiting Tirol to see apartments & sign contracts

There is currently a lockdown in place in Austria until 24 January and we are advising prospective apartment buyers to wait until after this date to travel to Tirol.

IMPORTANT: if you travelling to see an apartment or sign a contract (mortgage or Kaufvertrag) then your visit is categorsied as a business trip because you are considering an investment in a “gewerbliche Ferienwohnung” which supports tourism in Tirol.  

In other words, you are not travelling as a tourist and it is easier to enter Austria.  

Please contact us to discuss this and we will advise you on the best way to make a visit e.g. some visitors crossing the border from Germany will be arriving by car to see an apartment and returning home on the same day, without a stay in Tirol.  

The situation for tourists:    

Our operator, All-Suite Resorts GmbH, is currently planning to open on Monday 25 January and they are considering two scenarios for February which is typically a very busy month for tourism from all the key markets.

There might be no customers at all except for Austrians because the restrictions are in place entering Tirol and returning home or there could be a deluge of arrivals. 

Arriving tourists would probably have to show a negative test to avoid quarantine or if they do not have a test then this could be arranged on arrival and the guest would have to stay in their apartment for up to 24 hours until they get the result.  

Tourists would have to comply with their home country rules and some of these might require a quarantine for 5 days followed by a test to release them. 

This might be an acceptable given the various holidays in key markets like Germany, the Benelux, Switzerland and the Czech Republic.  

The new “work from home” means the impact of quarantine is less disruptive on working lives.   

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions. 

27 November: visiting Tirol & site visits

There is currently a lockdown in place in Tirol until 6 December.  Hotels are closed to leisure travellers/tourists; only business travellers are allowed to stay in hotels.

Some of our buyers have legitimate excuses to travel for business or for the purpose of making an investment in a “gewerbliche Ferienwohnung” which supports Austria’s tourism industry.

The Federal Government has ordered over 7 million tests to try and screen the entire population at 100 testing stations across the country before Christmas.

SITE VISITS – REAL & VIRTUAL

  • Kristall Spaces is still planning site visits in-person for buyers who are able to travel – observing all safety protocols
  • It is easier for buyers based in Austria to do site visits right now but some buyers are able to cross from Germany for 24hours to do the site visit and then they go home
  • Buyers from further afield can even fly into Munich airport to make a quick visit over the border before returning
  • Virtual visits: we are also doing visits over video with our customers – we can make a video call from the finished apartments or the shell of the apartments in Fieberbrunn for example
  • 3D tours: for finished apartments in Oetz, Sölden and St. Anton customers can walk around the last few apartments for sale (we have sold several apartments this way) e.g. https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=CnyP9pwmAEi

TESTING & SAFETY

  • The total number of infections in Tirol is falling
  • Most of the infections are in densely populated areas like Innsbruck – the valleys and ski resorts are not affected and, for example, there are 164 infections in the Bezirk of Landeck, the district which covers Ischgl and St. Anton
  • Our hotel operating company can arrange COVID tests with local doctors and have the cost charged to the bill for the stay in our apartments https://www.apartments-oetztal.com/en/latest/
  • The national testing programme will enable all the authorities to isolate infected people before Christmas
  • Andreas Steibl, the Director of Tourism in Ischgl says more than €700,000 had been invested in their hygiene and protection plan which “goes far beyond the government’s measures”
  • The Tirol state government and University of Innsbruck are monitoring Ischgl’s sewage works to identify any presence of the virus
  • Disinfection of all cable cars takes place several times a day using special cold fogging devices: within 1 minute 99.99% of viruses, bacteria and spores are eliminated (the active ingredient does not leave behind residue and is 100% biodegradable, non-toxic, pH-neutral as well as skin- and eye-friendly)
  • And a multifunctional scarf with a filtering face-piece comes free with the lift pass

WHERE TO SKI

  • The ski slopes in Austria will not be closing
  • Tourism Minister Elisabeth Köstinger (ÖVP) makes the point that the virus does not spread on the ski slopes but mainly in closed indoor areas: “Das Virus verbreitet sich nicht auf den Skipisten, sondern vor allem auch in geschlossenen Innenräumen”
  • Ski lift openings: Oetz (11 Dec), Fieberbrunn (7 Dec), Ischgl (17 Dec), Leutasch cross-country started 20 November,  Sölden (11 Dec) and St Anton (18 Dec)

Please contact us today to discuss your visit to Tirol.