Author: Blank Rome LLP

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EB-5 Financing Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance

EB-5 and Hospitality Financing: Why EB-5 No Longer Slows Deals

By David A. Sudeck —

This post is the fifth in a series presenting my current thoughts on the viability and timeliness of EB-5 financing for new hospitality construction. Each installment is published as a standalone piece and can be read independently of the others in the series.

Developers often worry that incorporating EB-5 will delay their projects, but that perception is now largely outdated. Today, a number of specialized EB-5 Regional Centers can close using their own balance sheet capital and subsequently backfill with EB-5 investor proceeds. Others have been able to raise EB-5 investor proceeds (once the I-956F is approved) much faster than expected. It is not uncommon for the Regional Center to have completed the EB-5 raise faster than our developer clients can put the funds to work.

We can work with the borrower and the Regional Center to craft a timeline so that the funds should be available when they are needed—similar to a conventional loan closing.

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EB-5 Financing Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance

EB-5 and Hospitality Financing: Leverage and Structure Matter More Than Price

By David A. Sudeck —

This post is the fourth in a series presenting my current thoughts on the viability and timeliness of EB-5 financing for new hospitality construction. Each installment is published as a standalone piece and can be read independently of the others in the series.

Developers evaluating whether to include EB-5 in their capital stacks often start by comparing rates, but that framing misses the point. EB-5-focused lenders are typically more cost-effective than debt funds and competitively priced with traditional banks. However, pricing is not their primary differentiator. The real distinction lies in how much leverage a developer can access and on what terms, and this is where EB-5 diverges sharply from both ends of the conventional lending spectrum.

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Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance Management

Christy L. Reuter on the Growing Trend of Tenant-Landlord Joint Ventures in Hospitality

Gittings Global – NE123764

In a recent interview with Law360 Real Estate Authority, Blank Rome partner and Hospitality practice co-chair Christy L. Reuter shared insights on several evolving trends shaping the hospitality and real estate sectors. Among the topics discussed were the increasing use of tenant-landlord joint ventures at restaurant properties; the growing willingness of operators to invest directly in hospitality ventures; and the expanding role of restaurants as key drivers of value in office, residential, and mixed-use developments.

Christy also explored how these evolving deal structures are aligning the interests of owners, operators, and developers, as well as the opportunities and legal considerations that come with more collaborative investment models.

To read more, please visit our website.

“Blank Rome Hospitality Atty Seeing More Tenant-Landlord JVs,” by Andrew McIntyre, was published in Law360 Real Estate Authority on August 19, 2026.

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EB-5 Financing Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance

EB-5 and Hospitality Financing: Urban EB-5 Is Still a Large-Scale Game

By David A. Sudeck —

This post is the third in a series presenting my current thoughts on the viability and timeliness of EB-5 financing for new hospitality construction. Each installment is published as a standalone piece and can be read independently of the others in the series.

Outside rural Targeted Employment Area (“TEA”) projects, EB-5 capital is significantly more selective. Lender appetite for non-rural deals is generally concentrated on transactions exceeding $50 million, typically for high-profile developments in well-known locations. The reason is straightforward: EB-5 investors and the funds raising capital on their behalf need a compelling, globally marketable story. Projects anchored by recognizable brands in major markets meet that standard, whereas a $25 million select-service hotel in a secondary city generally does not.

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Boutique Hotels Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance Management

Hotel Management and Franchise Agreements: From Term Sheet to Termination, A Brief History (Part 1)

By Jim Butler —

Every hotel management agreement and franchise agreement has a history. This post is the first in “The New Rosetta Stone” series telling that story: the people, the deals, and the decisions that created the documents we negotiate today. The founders who built this industry faced the same questions owners and operators face now: Who owns the building? Who runs it? Who sets the standard? And what happens when someone fails to meet it?

Six strangers in one bed

Two hundred fifty years ago, six strangers shared one bed at a roadside inn — and any person who complained was judged unreasonable. In this first post, Benjamin Franklin puts John Adams to sleep with a lecture on air. The first hotel room with a lock and key in 1829! And the moment brand segmentation was born—at a wagon stand on the National Road.

~ From “DNA of the Hotel Deal,” prelude to Hotel Management & Franchise Agreements: Negotiating and Terminating Hotel Contracts (expected publication early 2027).

When privacy was an unreasonable demand

Today, the United States has approximately 65,000 hotels and 5.8 million guest rooms. It is one of the most saturated hospitality markets on earth. Two hundred and fifty years ago, six strangers shared one bed at a roadside tavern, and the only person who complained was judged unreasonable. Everything between those two facts is the story this book will tell.

Six strangers shared one bed at a roadside tavern, and the only person who complained was judged unreasonable.

In colonial New England, keeping a “public house” was civic duty, not business. The Massachusetts General Court required towns to maintain houses of entertainment for travelers. Connecticut demanded that every town identify a “sufficient inhabitant” to serve as keeper. When Concord and Newbury failed to provide accommodations, they were fined. The colonial records of 1644 note that “strangers were straitened” (pressed for shelter) when towns neglected the obligation.

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EB-5 Financing Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance

EB-5 and Hospitality Financing: Rural TEAs—Still the Fast Lane

By David A. Sudeck —

This post is the second in a series presenting my current thoughts on the viability and timeliness of EB-5 financing for new hospitality construction. Each installment is published as a standalone post, allowing readers to engage with individual topics as they are released.

EB‑5 loans are especially synergistic with projects that are located in rural areas, as defined under the 2022 Reform and Integrity Act (“RIA”), and that synergy is intentional.

Importantly, “rural” does not necessarily mean isolated or hard to access. A rural Targeted Employment Area (“TEA”) is defined as a location outside a metropolitan statistical area (“MSA”) and with a population of 20,000 or less. This includes many well-known destinations, including ski towns, national park areas, and multiple Hawaiian Islands. Developers can easily confirm eligibility by entering a project address into the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) TEA designation map, which should be an early step in evaluating any capital stack.

Under the RIA, 20 percent of all EB‑5 visas are set aside (i.e., reserved) for rural projects, with priority processing attached to this designation. This built-in preference is not an incidental byproduct of the 2022 reforms; it reflects a deliberate policy choice to channel capital toward rural hospitality and other rural development, and it has translated into a meaningful practical advantage for developers who intend to develop qualified sites.

Due to the expedited processing by UCSCIS for rural projects, approvals for rural filings are currently being issued in as little as four to eight months. By comparison, I‑956F applications for non-rural projects, which do not receive the same statutory priority, have generally been taking roughly 18 to 36 months to process, though current figures should be confirmed against USCIS’s published processing times (as this can vary based on service center backlogs). Immigrant investor applications (I‑526E) processing times and visa availability timelines also currently vary significantly between rural and non-rural applications, with rural projects currently enjoying expedited processing times and availability. Developers recognized this advantage quickly, and by mid-2025, rural filings made up more than half of all new EB‑5 petitions. The speed differential is significant enough that it has reshaped how sponsors think about site selection and capital stack sequencing from the earliest stages of a deal.

As EB-5 usage expands and rural filings continue to climb, processing queues will inevitably lengthen. The current time frame reflects early adoption dynamics rather than a permanent structural benefit. Developers evaluating hospitality projects in qualifying locations should therefore treat the present processing environment as a window of opportunity rather than a fixed feature of the program, and act accordingly while the fast lane remains open.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or thoughts on this topic, and please meet with us at the upcoming 2027 EB‑5 & Global Immigration Expo in Newport Beach, California, January 20–22, 2027. Click here to register.

David is a partner and co-chair of Blank Rome’s Hospitality practice, where he focuses on the hospitality industry, with particular emphasis on the financing structures that support hotel development and acquisition. His practice draws on extensive experience guiding developers, lenders, and investors through complex capital stacks in the hospitality sector. Learn more about his practice here.

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EB-5 Financing Hospitality Industry Hotel Finance

EB-5 and Hospitality Financing: A Structural Shift in Capital Markets

By David A. Sudeck —

This post is the first in a series presenting my current thoughts on the viability and timeliness of EB-5 financing for new hospitality construction. Each installment will be published as a standalone post, allowing readers to engage with individual topics as they are released.

The complete series will cover:


Many hotel developers still view EB-5 as a slow, complex funding option suited only for large-scale projects. That misconception is limiting their access to higher-leverage, non-recourse structures, and competitive pricing, especially in markets where traditional capital is more difficult to secure. Today’s specialized EB-5 funds offer pricing competitive with banks, often below debt funds, while delivering stronger leverage and non-recourse terms. Many also close using balance sheet capital, eliminating delays for borrowers. Despite this, EB-5 adoption remains low due to outdated assumptions about timelines, complexity, and EB-5’s role within the capital stack.

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Hospitality Industry

Welcome to Hospitality Industry Insights

By Jim Butler, Christy L. Reuter, and David A. Sudeck —

Welcome to the Hospitality Industry Insights blog, our platform for exploring the evolving business of hospitality.

Hospitality encompasses a wide range of businesses and business models—from hotels, restaurants, resorts, private clubs, and mixed-use developments to the owners, developers, operators, investors, lenders, brands, and service providers that support them.

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Hotel Finance Management

The Management Agreement Decoded: Key Takeaways for Hotel Owners

By Mark S. Adams —

Blank Rome LLP was proud to serve as a sponsor of the 2026 Boutique Hotel Investment Conference, where the firm’s multidisciplinary Hospitality team was represented by three speakers across the event’s program. As my colleague David Sudeck, Esq. details in his companion post on this blog, the conference brought together a dynamic cross-section of owners, operators, investors, and developers focused on the boutique and lifestyle hospitality sectors.

I had the privilege of participating on a panel titled “The Management Agreement Decoded,” alongside Irina Zavina, Founder of Haskil Partners. Our session was designed for hotel owners and focused on how to negotiate hotel management agreements (“HMAs”) from the ownership perspective – maximizing leverage, protecting economic interests, and structuring deals that position owners for long-term success. Below are the key takeaways from our discussion.

1. Negotiate the Shortest Workable Term and Watch Renewal Deadlines

Hotel management agreements can run anywhere from 5 to 50 years – and I’ve seen one agreement for as long as 90 years. In the boutique and lifestyle space, however, owners often hold more leverage than they realize. In the lux boutique space, your property probably represents a meaningful share of a brand’s portfolio – say 15 percent of their total properties – so you have real negotiating power. Use it to secure the shortest initial term possible, with renewals conditioned on earned, demonstrated performance rather than granted automatically. Pay close attention to renewal mechanics: some agreements include automatic renewal clauses where missing a 30-day opt-out window can lock you back in for another full cycle.

2. Understand and Prioritize Your Termination Rights

Termination rights are your most important area of focus. Three categories deserve special attention:

  • Performance Test: Brands rarely fail formal performance tests because cure rights allow them to pay the shortfall and reset the clock. And, typically, the clock does not even start for five years. To make this right meaningful, negotiate to shorten the testing window to start at three years so you can evaluate the relationship early.
  • Termination on Sale: This is the single most important termination right. An unencumbered hotel – one not locked into a long-term management agreement – is typically worth significantly more on the open market. Securing the right to terminate on sale creates real, measurable value for ownership because the in-coming owner will have its own vision for the property and management company.
  • Liquidated Damages / Termination Fee: These are fairly standard, but the fee amount (whether calculated on 12 months trailing management fees or 36 months trailing management fees) can be negotiated down at the outset.

Bottom line: If you are forced to concede one termination right, I would give up the performance test – brands almost never fail it anyway. Termination on sale is by far the most critical right to retain.

3. Secure the Right Approval Rights

Owners should fight for three key approval rights:

  • Annual Operating Budget: Ensuring you have meaningful input into how the property’s operating budget is set each year.
  • Capital Expenditure (Capex) Reserves: Negotiate what is required for the FF&E reserve, particularly with boutique properties where there may not be a particular standard and differ from property to property.
  • General Manager Selection: I consider this the most important approval right. The general manager is the primary touch point for service quality and guest experience – the person who ultimately delivers on your brand promise every day.

4. Don’t Overthink the SNDA

The Subordination, Non-Disturbance, and Attornment agreement (“SNDA”) is a three-party agreement between lender, owner, and brand. Its primary function is to protect the brand’s position in the hotel if the lender forecloses. My view: the owner does not have much at stake in this particular negotiation. The SNDA is an easy concession to grant in full – save your negotiating capital for the issues that drive real economic value.

5. Negotiate the Payment Waterfall

Disputes in HMAs are almost always about money. One of the most effective tools for preventing conflict is a well-structured payment waterfall. Can the brand take management fees only after payment of debt service, or, after essential expenses like property taxes and insurance? Negotiating the waterfall correctly at the front end creates a true partnership dynamic between owner and operator – and significantly reduces the likelihood of disputes down the road.

6. Do the Work at the Front End

In 20 years of hospitality litigation practice, based on hundreds of arbitrations and mediations, and thousands of grievances, the common thread across all of them: disputes over money. The best protection an owner can have is thorough, disciplined front-end negotiation. As I tell my clients, the goal is to negotiate terms so good that you never need to call a litigator like me.

For a deeper dive into the strategies and examples discussed during the panel, I encourage you to watch the full session recording: Watch “The Management Agreement Decoded”.

Stay tuned to Hospitality Industry Insights for continued analysis and practical guidance on the legal and business issues shaping the hospitality industry. Our team is here to help owners, operators, investors, and developers navigate the complexities of this dynamic sector.

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Boutique Hotels Hotel Finance

What Boutique Hotel Sponsors Need to Know About Today’s Financing Market

By David A. Sudeck —

Blank Rome was proud to serve as a sponsor of the 2026 Boutique Hotel Investment Conference, one of the premier gatherings for professionals focused on the boutique and lifestyle hotel sector. The firm featured three speakers at this year’s event, underscoring our deep commitment to thought leadership and client engagement in the hospitality space. As my colleague Mark Adams details in his companion post on this blog, the conference brought together owners, developers, operators, and capital providers for candid discussions on the forces driving boutique hotel investment—from evolving guest expectations to creative capital solutions.

I had the privilege of moderating a panel titled “Debt and Equity Investment for Boutique Hotels,” alongside an outstanding group of capital markets professionals: Joe LeVine (Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Mercer Street Partners), Spenser Apramian (VP Investments, Bridgeton), and Laura Rapaport (Founder & CEO, North Bridge). Drawing on decades of collective experience, we explored how boutique hotel sponsors are navigating today’s lending environment and assembling creative capital stacks. Having spent 30 years in hotel-focused practice—and having watched the capital markets landscape shift dramatically—this is a conversation I find endlessly fascinating. Below are the key takeaways from our discussion.

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