"We do have them under agreement," Linchris CEO Christopher Gistis confirms to GlobeSt.com, in estimating a closing late next month. Gistis declined comment on matters related to the deal, such as the price, citing confidentiality clauses and the incompletion of the transaction. Efforts to contact Ashford officials by press deadline were unsuccessful. Market watchers spoken to were unable to estimate a purchase price given the variables of hospitality valuations, but one industry professional estimates the replacement cost for the 314 rooms being traded at a minimum of $100,000 per key. The product is even more valuable, says the observer, given a dearth of full-service hotels in suburban Boston and the unlikelihood of any new ones being developed.

The larger of the two assets targeted by Linchris is the Sheraton Milford at 11 Beaver St. According to Ashford's website, the property has just undergone a multi-million dollar upgrade of the 177 rooms and common areas, including a Legends Sports Grille Restaurant and 10,000 sf of meeting space. The 137-room Radisson Hotel Rockland at 929 Hingham St. was originally constructed in 1988 and renovated in 2002. Features include residential suites, a grand ballroom and 3,500-sf of meeting space, plus a business center, fitness room and heated pool. "They are really nice facilities," opines one hotel analyst familiar with both inns.

Linchris presently has more than two dozen hotels under ownership, having made news when the company paid $100 million for an 855-room portfolio in Maine and Massachusetts, as reported by GlobeSt.com. Gitsis says his company is pursuing a growth strategy, even preparing to broaden its traditional focus on the northeast, with opportunities being eyed in the mid-Atlantic states and down into Florida. "We are looking to do something in the near future," he says, but adds that nothing is further along than the Ashford negotiations.