Hotels have been borrowing design from apartments, apartments have been borrowing design from hotels—it was only a matter of time before someone married the two. Enter WaterWalk Hotel Apartments, an extended-stay concept that features hotel amenities and are fully furnished in a gated multifamily community.

Rockford Development Group just signed on to build eight WaterWalk Hotel Apartments franchises in San Antonio, Denver, Dallas and Austin. The agreement was led by Rockford’s Paul Roberts and industry veteran Rob Mossburg (pictured). It'll cost about $150M to build all eight; the first will break ground this April in San Antonio.

With the length of visitation in extended-stay hotels shortening and the number of multifamily renters in apartments increasing, WaterWalk president Jon Wohlfert tells us the door is wide open for a property of this type. Jon says WaterWalk's communities target those staying for approximately a month.

To choose the new cities, his team married their research and experience to create a list of the top 32 markets, and selecting the next four markets from that was an easy decision. 

Looking to check in? You're in luck. With this latest contract, WaterWalk has 27 properties in development.