Developers are expanding Seattle's hotel stock — over 2,000 rooms will deliver in the next two years alone. Can demand keep up?
In the past three years, developers completed five hotels, adding 671 rooms to the downtown hotel inventory, according to the Downtown Seattle Association. More than 6,000 rooms are now in the pipeline, including 2,781 under construction and 3,397 in earlier stages of development.
A surge in new supply will come online in 2018, when 1,724 units under construction will be completed (plus possibly a few hundred more that have been permitted). That compares with 915 rooms that will be added to the Seattle market this year.
MG2 principal Ron Mitchell said the hospitality industry in the Seattle region will continue growing steadily in 2017 and beyond. “The current demand is strong with occupancy running at an average of 85%. With the thousands of rooms currently under construction, or in planning, we are projected to have 22,600 rooms by 2021."
That will not be a problem for the market, he said. "Demand will continue to increase and should not outpace supply. Seattle’s economic fundamentals are strong, which will fuel demand. International travel to our region has increased yearly at 14%-plus, and with the addition to the convention center, we will add about $240M in visitor spending annually.”
Find out more about the local hotel market at our Future of Emerald City Hospitality event March 21, beginning at 7:30 a.m. at the Triple Door.
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