Westend Hotel to be auctioned

Auctioneers have put Westlands Westend Hotel on sale over failure to settle a bank loan running into hundreds of millions.

It is understood the debt stands at Sh240 million and is owed to Bank of India (BOI). The hotel that earlier pushed back a similar auction in March said it would again move to court.

“We are working to resolve this,” said a hotel manager who identified herself only as Mary without divulging further details.

In a notice published in the dailies, Dalali Traders invited potential buyers of the prime property to attend a sale event mid next month.

“Under instructions received from the chargees advocate, we shall sell by public auction the under mentioned property on Friday 16 November at our offices along Kijabe Street next to Universal Church starting at 10:30am,” they said.

“All interested purchasers are requested to view the property and verify the details for themselves. A refundable deposit of Sh500,000 to be paid at our offices to obtain a bid number.”

The hotel comprises a seven-storey building with basement parking. It has 42 rooms, 14 serviced apartments, spa, gym, conference space and a restaurant on the 7th floor.

Its basement comprises 17 parking spaces and a security office. Its ground floor has a conference centre, laundry area, staff dining room, and stores.

Located on Stima Road off Lower Kabete in Westlands it sits on approximately 0.0858ha (0.212 acres).

“A deposit of 25 percent of the sale price must be paid in cash or banker’s cheque at the fall of the hammer and balance paid within the 90 days to the charges,” said the auctioneers.

The auction comes as the number of properties going under the hammer or businesses crippled by mounting debt has risen sharply in recent months.