Plaza Hotel Sells For $600M, Report Says

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — The majority owners of Midtown Manhattan's iconic Plaza Hotel have struck a deal to sell their shares for $600 million, according to reports.

The Sahara Group, which owns 70 percent of the hotel, and hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal, who owns another 5 percent, will sell their stake in the hotel to a Dubai-based venture capital firm and a New York City-based real estate firm, the New York Times reported.

The new buyers were identified by the Times as Shahal Khan of Dubai-based White City Ventures, and Kamran Hakim of the Hakim Organization.

But the deal has one more hurdle to overcome. A partnership of New York-based real estate firm Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp and Saudi Arabia-based investment firm Kingdom Holdings has a right of first refusal to match the sale, the Times reported. The partnership owns the remaining 25 percent stake of the Plaza.

JLL Hotels and Hospitality Group were been hired in 2017 to help The Sahara Group sell the luxury hotel, located on Fifth Avenue and Central Park South, the Wall Street Journal reported at the time. Real estate experts told the Wall Street Journal that the hotel could fetch more than $500 million on the open market.

The Plaza was previously purchased for $675 million in 2004, but its value has since diminished. Since that sale, most of the Plaza's best rooms facing Central Park have been converted into condos, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Plaza currently contains 282 guest rooms and 152 privately-owned residences, according to the report.

Read the full New York Times report here.

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