Sonder’s recent demise left a short-term rental vacuum in the United States. Enter Belvilla.
The Amsterdam-based subsidiary of SoftBank-backed OYO Hotels expanded into the United States for the first time, taking control of a handful of Sonder’s former properties, Bisnow reported. Belvilla acquired the rights to 10 of the 79 properties available through Sonder’s Chapter 7 liquidation process.
Belvilla, which operates short-term rentals and apartment-style hotel properties, already launched at three of the buildings in question, including two in Long Island City, Queens. Among the other properties it is taking over are buildings in Brooklyn, Seattle, Denver, Philadelphia, Austin and Phoenix.
It doesn’t appear Belvilla will greatly expand its takeover of Sonder buildings, as it only plans to operate a limited volume of properties, according to a press release. But an executive with Belvilla’s parent company, Prism, told the outlet that other property owners in the U.S. are already discussing the possibilities.
Sonder announced its Chapter 7 liquidation in November, one day after its partnership with Marriott International collapsed. Marriott terminated its licensing agreement with Sonder over the preceding weekend, claiming the short-term operator was in default on an agreement signed the previous year.
In its final quarterly report, Sonder cited “substantial doubt” about its ability to remain as a going concern. As of the end of June, Sonder had $1 billion of assets and $1.5 billion in liabilities. At that time, the company had around 8,300 units in 152 properties in its portfolio.
The market most affected by Sonder’s collapse was New Orleans, where 32 of Sonder’s 189 leases, or almost 17 percent, are up for grabs, according to a list of the leases from global asset company Gordon Brothers, which is managing the sale. Belvilla is already moving into the Big Easy to grab at least two of those leases.
If Belvilla is going to succeed in the United States, it will have to reconcile the problem areas that caused Sonder and one of its top competitors, LuxUrban, to fail.
Belvilla already boasts a portfolio of more than 60,000 vacation homes across Europe, reaching the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Austria, Italy and Spain.
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