Put to: Michelle Russo.
Why it matters to buyers: Start the RevPAR versus GOPPAR versus NOI discussion by agreeing definitions and reconciling accounts. HFTP’s USALI update introduces additional reporting for labor, loyalty-related items and mandatory brand/operator costs, providing specific areas to investigate when historical statements are not directly comparable. (hftp.org)
Draft framing of a good answer: Request a property-specific waterfall from room and ancillary revenue through departmental expenses, undistributed expenses, management charges, property-level obligations, financing and capital cash requirements.
Require the expert to label the exact calculation used for GOP, NOI and cash available for distribution. Ask where commissions, loyalty charges, leases, owner expenses and replacement funding appear. Every charge should appear once—not disappear because it sits outside an operator’s preferred profit measure, and not be deducted twice because it also appears in a supplementary schedule.
Reconcile the waterfall to the general ledger, balance sheet and cash movements. Ask how working capital and restricted accounts explain differences between accounting profit and cash available to owners.
Sharp follow-up: “Which three reconciled items explain the largest distribution shortfall, and which are genuinely controllable?”
Evidence to request: Monthly waterfall, account-mapping notes and an explanation of changes between reporting editions.
Interview status: No expert response has been recorded.