Portfolio

Three moves.

Hotels, hostels, short-term rentals and an RV park, all in coastal San Diego County. These three show how we work: we buy what the market misreads, reposition it hard, and run it ourselves.

Downtown · by Balboa Park · Hotel

The Neon Elm

Owned & operating

Before: the Elm Street building as a dated white hotel with red doors and an old vertical HOTEL sign.

After: the Neon Elm Hotel at twilight, charcoal facade, pink neon sign, lit arches and yellow doors.

Before and after slider for the Neon Elm. Lower values show more of the after photo.

What it was

A 50-room, 100-year-old Spanish-style building at 410 Elm, operating as a tired, dated hotel. Good bones, wrong story.

What we saw

A block from Balboa Park, walkable to downtown and Little Italy, with a courtyard nobody was using. The rooms could carry boutique rates if the building had an identity.

What we did

Full repositioning: the facade, the neon sign and the entry, plus remodeled suites with kitchenettes and smart-lock self check-in, and an outdoor courtyard with fire pit, cabanas and movie nights.

50rooms
$6.4Mpurchase, 2022
100 yrold building

The Neon Elm entry at dusk: three lit arches, checkered steps and the pink neon sign. — The entry, reborn.

Guests relaxing on lounge sofas around a fire table in the Neon Elm courtyard. — A dead courtyard, now the hotel's living room.

The Neon Elm lobby with navy walls, gold wave wallpaper, a check-in bar and black-and-white chevron floor. — Lobby and self check-in.

Mission Beach · Hotel

The Boardwalk Hotel

Owned & operating

Before: the Santa Clara Motel from its parking lot, with a small office, a blue-railed entry and cars parked out front.

After: the same view as the Boardwalk Hotel at twilight, with a lit BOARDWALK sign on the office, a glowing moon-gate entry and an open forecourt.

Before and after slider for the Boardwalk Hotel main entrance. Lower values show more of the after photo.

What it was

The Santa Clara Motel: stucco, parking lot, coin laundry, and a steps-to-the-sand location, run like a motel and priced like one.

What we saw

One of the most supply-constrained beach neighborhoods in California, with almost no boutique product for families and groups who want to stay on the sand.

What we did

A full reposition over 30 months: new identity, a moon-gate courtyard and lobby, remodeled rooms, and bikes, boards and beach gear included with every stay.