The growing segment of 'Soft Brand Rental' and Lyric Fundraise

Been watching Lyric for a while, alongside others in this space, and the recent staggering fundraise is a confirmation that they are now ready for big time scale up and "Soft Brand Rental Business" will be a main contender somewhere between hotels and Airbnb for your travels. However, it again feels like a deal priced to perfection. Have not seen the numbers myself but as someone who has worked on hotel investments and produced many scenario analysis for hotel valuations from India to Italy to the UK and Caribbean, this valuation feels like it can only be feasible should it become the dominant player of this new and growing segment. There is certainly a big opportunity and flexible accommodation is the name of the game but securing and refurbishing thousands of properties, let alone operating them at a feasible occupancy, with a time constraint is a dangerous game. Cities like New York with its ghost towers (over 50% not occupied in certain parts of Manhattan) which are pure investments and most looking to rent until they can be sold for profit (especially in this buyer market) could provide the right opportunity for companies like Lyric looking for medium term leases. Let's see, it's quite an exciting space to watch.

https://venturebeat.com/2019/04/17/airbnb-leads-150-million-investment-in-real-estate-and-hospitality-startup-lyric/