The report was released during HAMA’S 2026 Annual Spring Meeting held in Washington, DC.
“HAMA members continue to have a positive view of the hospitality industry,” said Dina Winder, HAMA president. “After the strong performance of the first quarter, nearly 60% of our members are expecting the hotels in their portfolios to exceed budgeted RevPAR for the full year. And owners are reinvesting in the industry, with nearly 90% planning hotel renovations and more than 70 percent of our members actively seeking acquisitions.”
Highlighted results include:
- The top three most concerning issues are demand, Iran War/Conflict and wage increases.
- Recession concerns continue to fade for the third year in a row, with just over 16% worried the U.S. will enter recession in 2026, a decrease from 37% in the fall 2025 survey and 49% in the spring 2025 survey.
- Cap Rate trends seem to be the most perplexing issue, with nearly equal factions thinking it will decrease less than 25 basis points (40%) and believing it will increase 25 basis points (35%).
2025 HAMA Student Competition award winners
For the 20th year in a row, the HAMA Education Committee created a real-world scenario offering student participants attending colleges/universities with a hospitality program the opportunity to assess a fictitious management company transition for a 1,200-room convention hotel. Students compared and evaluated three RFP responses to make an informed management company selection. This year, seven undergraduate and seven graduate universities submitted entries.
The winners this year were the Boston University undergraduate team, comprised of Amru Mahmoud, Jonathan Bear, John Sherburne, Devon Karras and Richard Lohnes, and the Florida International University graduate team, made up of Sophia Mayo, Jacob Reeder, Yasmin Bryan and Marc Velson Jerome.
Boston University made their decision based on the selected management company generating a higher market value, stronger EBITDA and lower execution risk. Florida International University also selected the same company and noted it would maintain the continuity of the sales pipeline, avoid brand-conversion disruption and downtime and with a larger key money contribution from the brand, reduce owners net exposure.
“Each year, we are more and more impressed with the quality of the submissions and the next generation of hospitality asset managers,” said John Paulsen, education chair. “Over 30 HAMA members participated as mentors to guide the students or judge the submissions. Through our student competition, HAMA continues to build that bridge between the academic and practical sides of our industry. These are well thought-out, insightful opinions that demonstrate a deep understanding of the hotel landscape and what it takes to succeed in today’s marketplace. The future of the industry is in good hands.”
Tags: Dina Winder, HAMA Education Committee, John Paulsen, Spring 2026 Industry Outlook Survey
