20 hours ago

Yatish Nathraj: Turning Distressed Hotels into Premier Hospitality Investments

Most hotel owners panic when the market drops. Yatish Nathraj sees it as the best time to shine.

Yatish grew up in the hotel business. His mom ran a hotel management company for over 20 years. His family bought burned out, run down hotels and turned them into brand name properties.

Today he runs HTL. His team helps investors buy, finance and run hotels, with brands like Hilton, IHG, Best Western and Hyatt.

Bruce and Yatish talk about the hidden risks in hotels, why good operators win in a down market, and why he thinks San Francisco is one of the most overlooked places to invest right now.

Key takeaways

Hotels mix three jobs in one: running a business, owning real estate and managing risk.

Risk is the part most people skip. Yatish has seen a hotel get hit by a hurricane one day before a sale closed.

In a down market, weak operators cut too deep. Strong operators keep guests happy and take market share.

His sweet spot is hotel deals from $10 million to $50 million.

He uses AI to explain hotel deals in plain words for investors who are new to hotels.

About Yatish

Yatish Nathraj leads HTL, a hotel investment and management firm. He studied hospitality at UNLV and USC and has run hotels that won national awards with Choice Hotels.