JLL Appoints Charlie MacIldowie to Lead Global Hotel Desk in London
JLL announced Oct. 12 that it has appointed Charlie MacIldowie to lead its Global Hotel Desk and to serve as managing director in its EMEA Hotels & Hospitality Capital Markets team. MacIldowie will be based in London, where he will execute pan-European hotel transactions while leading the desk's cross-border efforts, the firm said.
MacIldowie most recently served as senior director in EMEA Living Capital Markets at JLL. In his new role he reports to William Duffey, JLL's head of EMEA Hotels & Hospitality Capital Markets.
Charlie MacIldowie's Background in Hotel Investment Sales
JLL said MacIldowie brings 15 years of real estate capital markets experience across EMEA and Asia Pacific. He spent 14 years in hotel investment sales based in London, Singapore and Tokyo. Transactions he closed during that time include the Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk, the Oakwood Suites Yokohama and GIC's roughly $1 billion acquisition of the Seibu Portfolio in 2022, according to the firm.
In a statement, MacIldowie said he is rejoining the EMEA Hotels & Hospitality team, where he began his career 15 years ago. "I look forward to leveraging the experience and relationships I gained in Asia to complement our market-leading EMEA team and support clients with cross-border interests around the globe," he said.
Role of JLL's Global Hotel Desk
JLL describes the Global Hotel Desk as a specialized group of senior advisers that arranges cross-border capital flows within the hotel sector. The team has relationships with international family offices, sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors, and its mandate is to match offshore capital with hotel and hospitality investment opportunities worldwide, the firm said.
MacIldowie will work with JLL's regional Hotels & Hospitality heads: Duffey in EMEA, Nihat Ercan in Asia Pacific, and Kevin Davis and Dan Peek in the Americas. Within EMEA, he will focus on acquisitions and disposals of single hotel assets, portfolios and platform opportunities alongside the EMEA Hotels & Hospitality Capital Markets team, which JLL said comprises more than 50 professionals advising hotel owners and investors across the region.
Duffey said in a statement that JLL has been the market leader in global hotel transactions and that MacIldowie's appointment "reflects his exceptional contribution and expertise, demonstrating our ongoing commitment to connecting clients with capital."
JLL's Hotel Transaction Track Record
JLL's Hotels & Hospitality group has advised on more than $200 billion in hotel transactions since 1999, the firm said. Based on RCA data cited by JLL, it closed $5.8 billion of hotel transactions in EMEA and $10.6 billion globally in 2025.
MSCI Real Assets data show the $10.6 billion represented nearly 25% of global hotel investment deal volume by sales value. In EMEA, JLL held a 35.3% sell-side brokerage market share in 2025. Transactions JLL advised on that year included the $998 million sale of a 28-property Nordic hotel portfolio from Midstar Hotels to CapMan Hotels II, the €430 million sale of the Mare Nostrum resort in Tenerife, and the £280 million sale of the Holiday Inn London Kensington High Street.
European Hotel Investment Market Context
The appointment comes as European hotel investment has recovered. Volume reached €22.6 billion in 2025, up 30% year over year, according to HVS data. The market included 461 transactions involving 725 hotels and more than 107,000 rooms, making 2025 the strongest year since 2019. Single-asset deals made up nearly 70% of volume, or €15.6 billion across 411 hotels, while portfolio transactions totaled about €7.0 billion, up 3%.
Activity continued in the first half of 2026, with investment of €11.7 billion, 19.5% above the 10-year average despite a 9.5% year-over-year decline. Transactions above €100 million rose 30%. Cross-border capital was a notable part of the picture: Asia Pacific investors increased their European hotel investment volume by 86% in the first half, while Middle Eastern and African investors increased activity by 31%.
JLL's 2026 global hotel outlook showed global direct hotel transaction volume in 2025 up 22% from the 2023 trough. EMEA volume rose 4%, the Americas rose 27% and Asia Pacific declined 20%. Savills has characterized 2025 as a year of stronger European hotel activity, improved liquidity in equity and debt markets, and closer alignment between buyers' and sellers' pricing expectations.
Outlook
MacIldowie's remit spans single assets, portfolios and platforms, as well as coordination of the Global Hotel Desk across regions. His experience in London, Singapore and Tokyo coincides with increased Asia Pacific investment in European hotels recorded in the first half of 2026.
JLL (NYSE: JLL) reported annual revenue of $26.1 billion, operations in more than 80 countries and a global workforce of more than 112,000 as of June 30, 2026.