Originally Posted by sbtinme
Yep, this is fast becoming *wood's new profit model for new properties. This is happening in at least a dozen cities around the planet, including mine in Portland Maine where a new Westin will be built with adjacent Westin Condos for sale. I think *Wood finds that they maximize their total profit by entering CERTAIN markets this way. This allows for a smaller Westin than normal, but with the same array of amenities that would be expected of a larger facility.
It also allows developers to build using someone else's money (from advance condo sales) and to get their remaining cash out of a building as quick as possible.
From all that I've read, Starwood is only managing all of these types of projects - I can't recall seeing the last time they actually built a new hotel using their own money.