In the recent U.S. Construction Pipeline Trend Report released by Lodging Econometrics (LE), at the close of Q1 2021, New York City had the most projects in the U.S. construction pipeline with 145 projects totaling 24,762 rooms. Other U.S. markets that follow are Los Angeles with 144 projects totaling 23,994 rooms, Dallas with 135 projects totaling 16,260 rooms, Atlanta with 132 projects totaling 18,264 rooms, and Orlando with 98 projects totaling 17,536 rooms.
New York City has the greatest number of projects under construction with 110 projects totaling 19,457 rooms. Following New York City with the highest number of projects under construction is Los Angeles with 39 projects totaling 6,657 rooms, and then Atlanta with 39 projects totaling 5,500 rooms, Dallas with 32 projects totaling 3,795 rooms, and Orlando with 27 projects totaling 4,693 rooms.
The top 50 markets in the United States announced a total of 74 new projects, accounting for 10,219 rooms, during Q1 2021. The leading markets for new project announcements include Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif., with 6 projects totaling 633 rooms, Los Angeles with 5 projects accounting for 768 rooms, Phoenix with 5 projects totaling 402 rooms, Nashville with 4 projects totaling 692 rooms, and San Diego with 4 projects totaling 474 rooms. New project announcements have been slow in the wake of the pandemic due in part to the inability to conduct business in the traditional pre-COVID way, but developers are increasingly optimistic and anxious to move forward with new projects as the country fully reopens.
Experts at LE are seeing an increase in renovation and brand conversion activity throughout the top 50 markets. During Q1, 1,198 projects totaling 190,475 rooms were in the renovation/conversion pipeline. There are over ten markets in the United States that currently have more than 15 substantial renovation and conversion projects underway. This group is led by Houston with 27 projects, Los Angeles and New York each with 22 projects, followed by Chicago, Miami, Phoenix, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Dallas, Orlando, and Philadelphia.
In Q1 2021, the top 50 markets saw 128 hotels totaling 17,636 rooms open. LE is forecasting these same 50 markets to open another 367 projects totaling 47,592 rooms over the next three quarters, for a combined 495 projects totaling 65,228 rooms in 2021.
