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RALEIGH-DURHAM, N.C., Aug. 11 /PRNewswire/ — Jackson-Shaw, a national real estate development and investment firm, today announced that it has awarded management contracts to operate two Marriott properties in the Dallas area to Concord Hospitality Enterprises, one of the nation’s top-ranked hotel developer/owner/operators. Concord also will provide pre-opening services for the hotels.
The two properties, a 102-room Residence Inn and 104-room Fairfield Inn & Suites, will anchor The Cascades at The Colony, Jackson-Shaw’s 100-acre, master-planned community in The Colony, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. The hotels are expected to open in the spring of 2009 and represent Jackson-Shaw’s continued commitment to expanding its hotel portfolio, with the planned development of another property in Dallas and one in Jacksonville, Florida.
“We went through an extensive process to choose a hotel management company that was aligned with our vision for the community, as well as with our values as a developer,” said Christopher Sheldon, vice president of hotel operations at Jackson-Shaw. “Concord has the expertise and experience to deliver the level of quality and excellence we expect for these properties, which are located along a major corridor in an emerging suburb.”
The addition of the two contracts increases Concord’s managed properties to half of the company’s total portfolio of more than 50 hotels, and moves the company towards its stated goal of doubling its portfolio size by 2010.
“Jackson-Shaw is one of the most respected real estate developers in the country, and we look forward to partnering with them to extend their track record of excellence,” said Grant Sabroff, senior vice president of business development at Concord. “Concord intends to build on its reputation for successfully positioning new hotels and providing excellence in pre-opening services, in addition to working hand-in-hand with the owners and Marriott to leverage our expertise in managing upper select-service hotels.”
The Residence Inn, located at 6900 Cascades Court, will feature a 350 square-foot meeting room, a business library, exercise room, all-purpose sports center for basketball, tennis and volleyball, guest laundry facility, outdoor pool and whirlpool, complimentary in-room high-speed Internet access and surface parking for 107 cars.
The select-service PLUS, Marriott Fairfield Inn & Suites, located at 5909 Stone Creek Drive, will feature a 5,500 square-foot events center made up of a 3,500 square-foot ballroom and two 1,000 square-foot meeting rooms. Additionally, there will be a business library, exercise room, guest laundry facility, outdoor pool and whirlpool, complimentary in-room high-speed Internet access and a complimentary hot breakfast will be offered each morning. The property will include surface parking for 133 cars.
Jackson-Shaw has completed the first phase of The Cascades at The Colony, known as the Campus @ Cascades, comprising six buildings totaling over 200,000 square feet of flex space, as well as the project’s focal point, a two-acre park with cascading water feature. Upon completion of the entire development, The Cascades at The Colony will include 200,000 square feet of office space, 200,000 square feet of flex space and 100,000 square feet of retail space, in addition to the two hotel properties. In addition, KB Homes will develop 184 townhome units and 108 garden homes.
About Jackson-Shaw
Jackson-Shaw, a national real estate development company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, has more than 37 years of experience in the development of diversified real estate properties. The company has completed more than 38 million square feet of development since its founding in 1971. Today, Jackson-Shaw focuses its development activity on a variety of project types, including office, industrial, mixed use, hospitality and residential. The company’s consistent goal is to increase and enhance values in real property assets for both its clients and capital partners.
About Concord Hospitality
Concord Hospitality Enterprises Company, an award-winning hotel management and development company based in Raleigh-Durham, N.C., manages 50 hotels and with over 6,000 guest rooms in 11 states and two Canadian providences under such well-known brands as Renaissance, Marriott, Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn by Marriott, Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, and Hampton Inn and Suites, and an independent boutique hotel. Formed in 1985, the company was recently listed as one of the top management companies in the nation by hotel & Motel Management. Concord properties are some of the most awarded hotels in the country, having won nearly 30 honors in the past two years alone. For more information, visit .
Contact: Melanie Boyer, Jerry Daly
(703) 435-6293
Concord Hospitality

LAS VEGAS, July 21 /PRNewswire/ — Today many Americans, faced with layoffs, a lagging economy and sharply increasing gas prices, are relocating in search of new employment opportunities. While many may get a steal of a deal on a new home in light of today’s real estate crisis, the National Association of Realtors reports that home inventories are at an 18-year high, making many of these same home buyers the product of a “Real Estate Catch-22″ — the problem faced when deciding whether to take a chance and be stuck with two homes (and two mortgages) or sell before buying.
For those forced into a move and dealing with the balancing act of two homes and two mortgages, some homeowners are taking a turn at becoming a landlord to subsidize the cost to keep two properties while riding the ebb and flow of the real estate tide.
“With families moving to different cities and states in search of employment opportunities more people are faced with the stress of paying two mortgages or, even worse, a potential foreclosure,” said Robert Kanaat, CEO and founder of TenantWIZ, an online rental property management company. “To balance the added costs of dual home payments, many are looking for ways to use their vacant property as a source of revenue. One popular alternative has been turning the home into a rental unit.”
For multi-homeowners interested in generating additional revenue to offset the costs of two home mortgages, without quitting their day job, Kanaat offers first time “landlords” the following six tips:
Determine if it is a year-round rental or vacation destination. Based on the location of your home — is it near waterfront or in a city with strong tourism — you may be able to turn a steady seasonal profit renting it out to vacationers. To save costs while on the road, more families are turning to vacation home rentals rather than hotels to save costs on extended stays and meals.
Get the 411 on potential renters. Whether advertising on the Web, in the newspaper or via word-of-mouth, everyone has heard horror stories of renting gone wrong. Make sure you know as much as possible about potential renters and do the necessary background checks to make sure they do not have credit issues that will impact payment. For long-term tenants, Legaldocs.com provides landlords with a free tenant application that includes a background check consent area.
Name your price. Determining how much to charge for rent should be based on a variety of factors including the cost of your mortgage — how much do you need to charge to break even — to the current rental rate of comparable houses in your neighborhood and city to the amenities your home offers (e.g. do you have a pool, swing set for kids, etc.).
It’s not you it’s me. Just like a first date, first impressions count. Make sure your home looks its very best to entice potential renters to want to learn more — changing the light bulbs, cleaning the carpets, fresh paint and a nice yard can go a long way.
Make it easier to manage remotely. For time-strapped individuals who are several hours away from the property, consider using an online program to manage your property. For example, TenantWIZ offers property managers the ability to do everything from scheduling maintenance, to tracking expenses, unlocking the property and collecting payment — all remotely and automatically.
Unload through rent-to-own. Speak with your mortgage company and determine whether you could offer your home as a rent-to-own. Not only will you have a better chance of getting quality renters, you may also solve your entire two-home challenge.
About TenantWIZ Software Corporation (TWZS)
TenantWIZ Software Corporation (TWZS) enables multi-homeowners, agents and rental businesses the ability to create and manage all aspects of their vacation rental property remotely and automatically using the company’s online lifecycle management system. Through the system’s feature-rich tools users are able to design a Web site, book rentals, unlock the property, collect payments and more. For more information, visit
TenantWIZ Software Corporation