Owner / assetThis deal

Job brief

Underwrite a boutique hotel acquisition

How and who for the hotel job—verified when attested.

When I am about to buy a 40–200 key independent, I want an ops-true memo so I do not pay for a T12 the night audit cannot support.

Usable on this screen

Scoped brief

Walk the hotel. Read the night audit. Sample comps and no-shows. Rebuild revenue from the desk up, not from the CIM down. A 'no' is a successful job. Do not use a sell-side desk as your buy-side conscience.

Outcome: A buy-side memo that rebuilds the T12 from ops evidence, names the basis risk, and is allowed to kill the deal.
Catalog budget band: $35–75k memo. A worksheet range, not a quote.
Catalog timeline: 3–6 weeks of real diligence. Not a promise.

Step 1
Treat the CIM as a claim, not a file
Rebuild occupancy, ADR, and channel mix from the PMS. Ask for a month of night audits and a week of folios. If you cannot have them, that is a finding.
Step 2
Walk as an operator, not as a tourist
Rooms product, labor reality, energy, and the actual GM. Sable will kill a deal for unbooked comps. That is the product.
Step 3
Price the next operator, not the last owner
What can this house run under you? Capex the CIM skipped belongs in the basis. Brand or independent is a strategy, not a vibe.
Step 4
Write a kill-switch
The memo must be allowed to say no. If the desk is paid to close, it is not underwriting.

Provider shortlist

People
Sable Underwriting Desk
Boutique acquisition underwriting
Catalog score 8.9. A post-job shape, not a verification. Stable id sable-desk.
People
Ashcroft Asset Advisors
Owner asset management
Catalog score 8.8. A post-job shape, not a verification. Stable id ashcroft.
People
Vale Street Capex
Rooms vs public-space capex
Catalog score 8.3. A post-job shape, not a verification. Stable id vale-street.
Software· demo
Ledgerlight Accounting
Hotel accounting & night audit export
Catalog score 7.8. A post-job shape, not a verification. Stable id ledgerlight.

Download markdown Full who list Record a result

Leave a record

The next hotel starts from what you leave

Harbor by Signalry stays hotels only. A description, a claim, and a reported result each leave a stable id behind. Nothing here is a price, a customer, or a verification.

Buyer
Describe your job
No account. Harbor by Signalry opens the closest catalog brief, when not to buy, and a shortlist. A weak sentence stays on the catalog.
Open a brief
Supplier
Join as a supplier
Company, jobs served, regions, and a hotel reference. The packet is queued as unverified pending. The form cannot mark it verified.
Start a claim
Hotel
Record a result
A metric, before and after, and the dates. It is shown as reported until a person checks the evidence. Verified Outcome is not insurance.
Record a result

AdviceA kill is a successful job.

VerifiedPine Court pass: walk. Unbooked comps found. CIM T12 unused.

Name a verified-outcome price Sit a 30-minute pilotHow ranking works

Situation

What is actually on fire

When I am about to buy a 40–200 key independent, I want an ops-true memo so I do not pay for a T12 the night audit cannot support.

Approaches

Two or three paths — with the give

Full buy-side desk

When. A memo that can end the deal

You give. $35–75k and a slower close

In-house plus a light walk

When. Speed and a cheaper file

You give. Blind spots the CIM was designed to hide

Sell-side numbers only

When. A fast IC slide

You give. The basis

Who to involve

· Owner / asset manager
· GM
· Controller
· Brand or operator liaison

First 7 days

YAML-shaped: day / theme / tasks / owner / risk / exit. Advice until a case is verified.

day: 1
Write the fail in one sentence
- · Write the fail in one sentence. Job: Underwrite a boutique hotel acquisition.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 2
Pull the last 7 days of the live number
- · Pull the last 7 days of the live number. If it is missing, that absence is the finding.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 3
Name who owns the workaround today (desk,
- · Name who owns the workaround today (desk, HK, night audit, owner).
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 4
Walk one peak hour
- · Walk one peak hour. Write what the system claims vs what the floor did.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 5
Ask vendors the worksheet questions
- · Ask vendors the worksheet questions. Discard anyone who cannot answer with a caveat.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 6
Pick one approach
- · Pick one approach. Write when-not-to-buy on the same page.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open
day: 7
Run the smallest test that would change Mo
- · Run the smallest test that would change Monday. No annual contract yet.
owner:
Owner / asset manager
risk:
The exit is not written down
exit:
A note the next shift can open

Decision worksheet

Questions, red flags, bands

Take this to a vendor call. Budget bands are Advice — a Harbor shape, not a quote.

Ask the vendor

1. Who types the status / number — a person, or your product?
2. What would have happened anyway in 90 days without you?
3. Show a property of this size and stack. Demo-labeled categories do not count as proof.
4. What can your agent never do (folio post, mark clean, change a rate)?
5. What is the kill-switch if guest comments move?

Red flags

· A desk that also has a sell-side on the same asset.
· Skipping night-audit sampling.
· Underwriting a brand you have not been awarded.

When not to buy. A CIM you have not walked. If the night audit cannot support the T12, the cap rate is fiction.

Do it in-house

Time and a named owner. No vendor. Use the 7-day plan first.

$35–75k memo

Typical Harbor band for this job — advice, not a quote.

Full program

People + system + 90-day proof. Only if the 7-day plan already failed.

Vendor checklist

Score the call. Keep it on this browser.

Weighted questions — yes/no, scale, or text. Must-pass ids persist on this browser. Pass threshold 70. A no on a must-pass is a walk-away — not a maybe.

Keys

Brand

Stack shape — not a partnership

property context · weight 2 · must pass
Can they name your key count and whether you are independent, soft-brand, or major — without a discovery theater?
property context · weight 2 · must pass
Do they treat your PMS as a shape (Opera-class / Mews-class / Cloudbeds-class) — not a fake partnership slide?
control · weight 3 · must pass
Who types the status / number — a person, or your product?
vendor · weight 2
What would have happened anyway in 90 days without you?
vendor · weight 2
Show a property of this size and stack. Demo-labeled categories do not count as proof.
vendor · weight 2
What can your agent never do (folio post, mark clean, change a rate)?
vendor · weight 2
What is the kill-switch if guest comments move?

Does not clear

0 / 100

must_pass: underwrite-boutique-acquisition-ctx-rooms, underwrite-boutique-acquisition-ctx-stack, underwrite-boutique-acquisition-q1

A must-pass failed. Walk away.

How

The brief

Step 1
Treat the CIM as a claim, not a file
Rebuild occupancy, ADR, and channel mix from the PMS. Ask for a month of night audits and a week of folios. If you cannot have them, that is a finding.
Step 2
Walk as an operator, not as a tourist
Rooms product, labor reality, energy, and the actual GM. Sable will kill a deal for unbooked comps. That is the product.
Step 3
Price the next operator, not the last owner
What can this house run under you? Capex the CIM skipped belongs in the basis. Brand or independent is a strategy, not a vibe.
Step 4
Write a kill-switch
The memo must be allowed to say no. If the desk is paid to close, it is not underwriting.

Tradeoffs

Full buy-side desk
You get. A memo that can end the deal
You give. $35–75k and a slower close
In-house plus a light walk
You get. Speed and a cheaper file
You give. Blind spots the CIM was designed to hide
Sell-side numbers only
You get. A fast IC slide
You give. The basis

Choice	You get	You give
Full buy-side desk	A memo that can end the deal	$35–75k and a slower close
In-house plus a light walk	Speed and a cheaper file	Blind spots the CIM was designed to hide
Sell-side numbers only	A fast IC slide	The basis

Pitfalls

· A desk that also has a sell-side on the same asset.
· Skipping night-audit sampling.
· Underwriting a brand you have not been awarded.

Success criteria

· T12 rebuilt from PMS and audit evidence.
· Capex and labor reality in the basis.
· Written permission to kill the deal.

Who

Ranked for this job

Rank is post-job score, then listed order. Not for sale. Software marked demo is an archetype.

Agencies & contractors

#1People

Sable Underwriting Desk

Buy-side hotel underwriting for 40–200 key independents — ops reality, not just a trailing twelve.

$35–75k buy-side memo

8.9

Post-job

11 reviews

Name a verified price Record an outcome Claim this listing

#2People

Ashcroft Asset Advisors

Independent owner advisors for GOP, management agreements, and capex sequencing — not a brand desk.

$25–60k engagement or $8k/month retainer

8.8

Post-job

22 reviews

Name a verified price Record an outcome Claim this listing

#3People

Vale Street Capex

FF&E and renovation sequencing that starts from guest-job evidence, not a lobby mood board.

$20–45k study; implementation bid separate

8.3

Post-job

14 reviews

Name a verified price Record an outcome Claim this listing

Systems

#1Software· demo

Ledgerlight Accounting

Demo-labeled hotel ledger that sits cleanly on a PMS export — not a generic SMB book tool.

Demo · $250–600 / month

7.8

Post-job

9 reviews

Name a verified price Record an outcome Claim this listing

AI agents

None ranked in AI agents yet. Harbor will not invent a provider.

Compare up to three

Fit first. Then the contract.

Default sort is fit, high to low. Unpublished SLA / term / switch cost is labeled ask — not invented. Demo software is a shape.

Sort

Sable Underwriting Desk
Highest fit
8.8
People
Price
$35–75k buy-side memo
Impl
7–21 (advice)
SLA
Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.
Support
On-property hours
Term
Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.
Switch
Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.
Verified
None on Harbor
Ashcroft Asset Advisors
8.7
People
Price
$25–60k engagement or $8k/month retainer
Impl
7–21 (advice)
SLA
Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.
Support
On-property hours
Term
Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.
Switch
Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.
Verified
None on Harbor
Vale Street Capex
8.1
People
Price
$20–45k study; implementation bid separate
Impl
7–21 (advice)
SLA
Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.
Support
On-property hours
Term
Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.
Switch
Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.
Verified
None on Harbor

Side-by-side vendor compare. Fit is Harbor’s published score. Unpublished contract fields are labeled ask.
Vendor	Fit	Price band	Impl days	Integrations	SLA / uptime	Support hours	Contract term	Switch cost	GM rating	Last verified
Sable Underwriting Desk Highest fit People	8.8	$35–75k buy-side memo	7–21 (advice)	acquisitions, underwriting, T12, ops diligence	Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.	On-property hours	Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.	Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.	8.9	None on Harbor
Ashcroft Asset Advisors People	8.7	$25–60k engagement or $8k/month retainer	7–21 (advice)	GOP, management agreements, capex, owner reporting	Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.	On-property hours	Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.	Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.	8.8	None on Harbor
Vale Street Capex People	8.1	$20–45k study; implementation bid separate	7–21 (advice)	capex, FF&E, renovation sequencing, payback	Not published — ask. Do not treat a slide as verified.	On-property hours	Ask. Annual-only is a red flag until the 7-day test.	Ask for the freeze window and folio owner.	8.3	None on Harbor

Loading the compare table…

Compare

When to pick whom

People do the work beside the desk. Software is a system — demo-labeled when it is a category shape. Agents draft; they do not post money or mark a room clean.

Provider	Kind	Score	Fee	Pick when	Walk away when
Sable Underwriting Desk	People	8.9	$35–75k buy-side memo	First-time or small-fund buyers of a single boutique.	Institutional portfolios with an in-house desk.
Ashcroft Asset Advisors	People	8.8	$25–60k engagement or $8k/month retainer	Owners who want a second set of books that is not the manager's.	Branded flags looking for a PIP vendor.
Vale Street Capex	People	8.3	$20–45k study; implementation bid separate	Owners choosing between a pretty lobby and rooms that book.	Full PIP execution for a 400-key flag.
Ledgerlight Accounting	Software· demo	7.8	Demo · $250–600 / month	Owner-operators tired of a generic bookkeeper file.	Multi-brand portfolios with a shared-service finance team.

Open graph

Hotels on this job

Pine CourtFlagstaff · 88 keysLabeled estimate

Open hotels Buy / sell desk

Evidence

Peer case studies

Owner / asset

9.1

A kill is a successful job

Pine Court (pass) · 88 keys · Flagstaff, AZ

Claim.: A kill is a successful job.
Evidence.: Night-audit sample vs CIM T12; unbooked comps; capex in the basis.
Caveat.: A later, smaller deal closed. This memo was not a ‘never Flagstaff.’

Read the case

Verified

Nearby jobs

Renegotiate a management agreement Decide lobby refresh vs rooms capex Lift GOP without cutting the guest experience

Scoped brief

Treat the CIM as a claim, not a file

Walk as an operator, not as a tourist

Price the next operator, not the last owner

Write a kill-switch

Sable Underwriting Desk

Ashcroft Asset Advisors

Vale Street Capex

Ledgerlight Accounting

The next hotel starts from what you leave

Describe your job

Join as a supplier

Record a result

What is actually on fire

Two or three paths — with the give

Full buy-side desk

In-house plus a light walk

Sell-side numbers only

Write the fail in one sentence

Pull the last 7 days of the live number

Name who owns the workaround today (desk,

Walk one peak hour

Ask vendors the worksheet questions

Pick one approach

Run the smallest test that would change Mo

Questions, red flags, bands

Score the call. Keep it on this browser.

The brief

Treat the CIM as a claim, not a file

Walk as an operator, not as a tourist

Price the next operator, not the last owner

Write a kill-switch

Tradeoffs

Ranked for this job

Agencies & contractors

Systems

AI agents

Fit first. Then the contract.

When to pick whom

Hotels on this job

Peer case studies

A kill is a successful job

Nearby jobs

Fit first. Then the contract.