chelsey leffet
Federal Per Diem Set for 2024/25: A Win for the Lodging Industry
Chelsey Leffet | August 22, 2024
The federal government per-diem rate is made up of a lodging allowance, a meals allowance, and an incidental expense allowance. The per-diem lodging rates, which set the maximum amount a federal traveler can reimburse, are based on the average rates for mid-priced hotels and are set annually by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). Since the 2005 fiscal year, federal lodging per-diem rates have been based on local average daily rate (ADR) data, less 5.0%. The rates are updated annually, with the next fiscal-year rates published in mid-August. For the 2025 fiscal year beginning October 1, 2024, the standard daily lodging allow...
Norfolk-Virginia Beach MSA: A Full Recovery
Chelsey Leffet | March 31, 2023
By Chelsey Leffet The Norfolk-Virginia Beach MSA comprises several cities aside from Norfolk and Virginia Beach, including Chesapeake, Suffolk, Newport News, Hampton, Portsmouth, and Williamsburg. The region’s economy revolves around the federal government, the military, the aerospace industry, and the transportation, construction, and healthcare sectors. Norfolk-Virginia Beach MSA vs. Top 25 U.S. Markets Historically, this MSA has performed roughly 50% below the top 25 U.S. markets in RevPAR. However, in 2020 and 2021, the market was able to outperform many other top 25 markets and closed the gap substantially in RevPAR performanc...
Recent Trends in Washington, D.C.’s Luxury Hotel Market
Caroline Dioso | February 2, 2023
By Caroline Dioso, Chelsey Leffet Historical Luxury Market Performance According to data compiled by STR, in recent years, the luxury segment has fallen 2–5% behind the Washington, D.C. market average in occupancy, while luxury rates have paced roughly $150 to $200 above average. This rate difference is largely due to a few luxury hotels that perform at a higher rate threshold than the remainder of the luxury class, including the Four Seasons, the Waldorf Astoria, both Ritz-Carlton properties, the Hay Adams, and the St. Regis. These higher-rated hotels make up 15% of the total luxury room supply in the District. The 2022 mar...
Market Pulse: Washington, D.C. Lodging Market
Chelsey Leffet | March 15, 2021
By Chelsey Leffet The Washington, D.C. lodging market has historically been one of the most stable of the major U.S. markets given its status as the hub of national political affairs and the center of governmental action and policy, while also playing a major role in international affairs. Aside from the government-related activity, numerous industries and institutions have contributed to and supported the region, including finance, education, healthcare, and scientific research. While typically insulated from recessions and tourism declines, Washington, D.C. was not spared amid the ongoing worldwide pandemic in 2020. Washington, D.C. 2...
Economy Extended-Stay Hotels Hold Up Best During Q2 2020
Rodney Clough | September 8, 2020
By Rodney Clough, Chelsey Leffet The second quarter of 2020 was the low point for the hospitality industry, as the world was gripped by the pandemic and as travel lockdowns were widespread. HVS compiled the 2020 performance statistics of brands reported by public companies for the second quarter and compared the data to second-quarter performance of 2019. The data reflect the resiliency of economy, extended-stay brands during the first months of the pandemic. Average Q2 Occupancy Decline (Points of Occupancy) Source: Stock Filings Economy, extended-stay brands experienced the least amount of impact, albeit still a significant ...
Federal Per Diem: Fiscal 2020/21 & Historical Trends
Chelsey Leffet | September 1, 2020
By Chelsey Leffet Government per-diem rates are set for a number of locations, many applying to multiple regions or localities in each state. A per-diem rate is made up of three components: a lodging allowance, meals allowance, and incidental expense allowance[1]; however, this article and the data presented below focus solely on the lodging allowance. The per-diem lodging rates, which provide a maximum amount that a federal traveler can reimburse, are based on the costs of mid-priced hotels, and are set annually by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). The following article examines the per-diem trends of the top lodging markets...
Key Takeaways: AHLA & AAHOA’s – Legislative Action Summit 2018
Chelsey Leffet | September 25, 2018
By Chelsey Leffet This year's Legislative Action Summit (LAS), held every year by the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) and the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), took place September 12–13 in Washington, D.C. Year after year, this event brings together a strong showing of hotel owners, operators, developers, investors, managers, and employees, as well as experts in government affairs and others interested in the lodging industry. Hurricane Florence did not deter the many industry professionals from traveling to D.C. to meet with their congressional representatives on "The Hill." The event included remark...
HVS Market Pulse: Annapolis, MD
Marcus R. Lee | April 26, 2018
By Marcus R. Lee, Chelsey Leffet Annapolis, Maryland's capital, is a historic seaport located 30 miles south of Baltimore and 30 miles northeast of Washington, D.C. Annapolis relies on tourism, state and local government activity, and renowned institutions of higher education for its economic livelihood. The Annapolis hotel market has been very stable over the last five years, with no proposed hotel development on the horizon. There have, however, been two hotel transactions in the last year, indicating the attractiveness and economic viability of this high-barrier-to-entry market to investors. Average rates for the city's hotels have r...
