An unnamed buyer (right) signs paperwork after winning the auction for the Economy Inn. Photo by Michael Thompson.
A maligned motel near the Diamond is set to go under new ownership.
An unidentified buyer purchased the Economy Inn at 1600 Robin Hood Road at a foreclosure auction on Thursday.
The buyer, who did not want to give his name, paid $1.29 million for the 99-room motel. The price includes a 10 percent premium for the Motleys Asset Disposition Group that conducted the auction held at the nearby Clarion Hotel at 3207 N. Boulevard.
The buyer said he was with Habit LLC and that he planned to renovate the motel and continue operating it. The incorporation of the LLC and the sale are still being finalized.
The Economy Inn and its 1.6-acre lot were previously owned by Shree Arihant of Richmond Inc. The firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July in attempt to block the foreclosure, but a bankruptcy court judge recently gave the lender the green light to move forward with the auction.
The Economy Inn property will continue to be run as a hotel. Photo by Burl Rolett.
The company defaulted on two loans to what is now Bank of Hampton Roads and owed the lender more than $1.6 million, according to its bankruptcy filings.
It’s at least the second motel near the Diamond that’s been sold within the last year. The Red Carpet Inn was sold to the VCU Health System for $1.3 million in November.
Tim Dudley of Motley’s said there had been interest on the Economy Inn, but no offers ever met the right terms.
A crowd of about 40 people, including hotel owners and developers, showed up Thursday to see how much the 51,000-square-foot motel might go for. The property was most recently assessed at $2.21 million, according to city records.
The first bid from the crowd was for $900,000.
Motleys President Mark Motley worked the floor to raise the sales price as bids trickled in over the course of about 45 minutes. Motley at one point implored the room to skip lunch and put the money toward higher bids.
When bidding reached $1.1 million, Motley called for a calculator.
“That’s $11,000 a room!”
An unnamed buyer (right) signs paperwork after winning the auction for the Economy Inn. Photo by Michael Thompson.
A maligned motel near the Diamond is set to go under new ownership.
An unidentified buyer purchased the Economy Inn at 1600 Robin Hood Road at a foreclosure auction on Thursday.
The buyer, who did not want to give his name, paid $1.29 million for the 99-room motel. The price includes a 10 percent premium for the Motleys Asset Disposition Group that conducted the auction held at the nearby Clarion Hotel at 3207 N. Boulevard.
The buyer said he was with Habit LLC and that he planned to renovate the motel and continue operating it. The incorporation of the LLC and the sale are still being finalized.
The Economy Inn and its 1.6-acre lot were previously owned by Shree Arihant of Richmond Inc. The firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July in attempt to block the foreclosure, but a bankruptcy court judge recently gave the lender the green light to move forward with the auction.
The Economy Inn property will continue to be run as a hotel. Photo by Burl Rolett.
The company defaulted on two loans to what is now Bank of Hampton Roads and owed the lender more than $1.6 million, according to its bankruptcy filings.
It’s at least the second motel near the Diamond that’s been sold within the last year. The Red Carpet Inn was sold to the VCU Health System for $1.3 million in November.
Tim Dudley of Motley’s said there had been interest on the Economy Inn, but no offers ever met the right terms.
A crowd of about 40 people, including hotel owners and developers, showed up Thursday to see how much the 51,000-square-foot motel might go for. The property was most recently assessed at $2.21 million, according to city records.
The first bid from the crowd was for $900,000.
Motleys President Mark Motley worked the floor to raise the sales price as bids trickled in over the course of about 45 minutes. Motley at one point implored the room to skip lunch and put the money toward higher bids.
When bidding reached $1.1 million, Motley called for a calculator.
“That’s $11,000 a room!”