Wells Fargo Bank last week assumed ownership of the foreclosed JW Marriott Chicago through a winning auction bid of roughly $251 million.
News reports from the Chicago Tribune note that Estein USA, the Orlando-based owner of the 610-room downtown Chicago hotel, failed to make payments on its $203 million loan. Subsequently, that amount further grew to $243 million.
"As trustee for investors in the loan, Wells Fargo filed a foreclosure lawsuit last year. The bank was the sole bidder on the hotel, which remains open," the news outlet reports.
The auction took place on June 8.
Commenting on the foreclosure of the asset, Bob Habeeb, CEO of Chicago-based hotel and restaurant management company Maverick Hotels and Restaurants, told the Chicago Tribune that the JW property "may not be the last hotel to find itself in the soup. If a prominent hotel like that can fall into foreclosure, it's a sign of weakness in the market."
The hotel first opened in 2010 during a resurgence of the city's Financial District, when developers converted aging office buildings into hotels. According to CoStar property data, the JW Marriott Chicago is operated by Marriott International.