Wyndham to sell 25 hotels

DALLAS, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Wyndham International of Dallas Friday said it will sell 25 hotels for $366 million to Goldman Sachs Group and affiliates of Highgate Holdings.

The deal, which completes Wyndham's planned disposition of properties, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2005.

The hotel operator said the sale of 15 Wyndham-branded properties and 10 non-proprietary hotels will result in a $49 million non-cash charge as of Dec. 31. The closing will lead to a $34 million gain in 2005, Wyndham said.

The company has been selling assets for more than a year to cut its debt load and focus on its namesake brand. In October, the company shook up management as part of its reorganization amid a multi-year struggle to cut billions of dollars in debt.

The company, with $2.49 billion in debt, earlier this year said it raised $1.85 billion by disposing of 132 properties since the start of 1999.

Earlier this month, Wyndham sold six hotels and partial ownership of its Summerfield Suites chain to Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners for $105 million.