NEW ORLEANS- Lowe Enterprises Investors (LEI) acquired the Royal St. Charles Hotel, an independent New Orleans boutique property, on behalf of an investment client.           

Just one block from the world famous French Quarter and three blocks from Bourbon Street, the 143-room hotel is located in downtown at 135 St. Charles Ave., between the French Quarter and the New Orleans Convention Center.

“The Royal St. Charles Hotel fits well with our investment strategy, which targets well-located properties in major metropolitan markets that offer the opportunity to add value at the property level,” said Bleecker P. Seaman, co-CEO of LEI. “With continued market repositioning, the hotel will benefit from the continuing robust improvement of the New Orleans hospitality market.”

LEI affiliate, Destination Hotels & Resorts, will take over the hotel management and will continue to operate the property as an independent, boutique hotel.

Royal St. Charles Hotel was converted in 2000 from office space to a boutique hotel. The property completed renovations in late 2012, and it now includes 2,600 square feet of meeting space, a fitness center and PJ's Coffee & Café outlet.

Russell Munn of Lowe Enterprises Investors and Rick Rush of Lowe Hospitality Group led the acquisition team. Larry Wolfe and Adam Etra of Eastdil Secured represented the seller, Clearview HotelCapital and WHI Real Estate Partners. 

The national outlook for hotel investment activity will improve in 2014, according to the Emerging Trends in Real Estate report by the Urban Land Institute and PwC. “This boost parallels the nation's economic recovery, and as travel increases the hospitality industry will continue to expand and benefit from the increased demand. This sustained recovery is likely to come in part from corporate travel — the bread and butter of the industry, according to a manager of a portfolio of hotels,” the Emerging Trends report said.