Laurel A. Keller MAI, ISHC, joined Newmark Valuation & Advisory in 2018. A member of Newmark’s esteemed Hospitality, Gaming, & Leisure specialty practice (HGL), Keller also acts as team leader for HGL’s attractions subsector, overseeing a team of seasoned experts who provide best-in-class services. Building on a hotel-based operational and advisory foundation, she provides valuation and advisory services for existing and proposed lodging and leisure-related hospitality assets domestically and abroad – in 47 U.S. states and four countries, to date. In addition to hotels and resorts, Keller has completed more than 500 feasibility studies and appraisals of multisport complexes, sleepaway camps, RV parks and campgrounds, family entertainment centers, and indoor and outdoor waterparks & amusement parks.
Additionally, Keller provides valuation analyses on a variety of tax abatements, and has significant experience in litigation assignments, including the preparation of retrospective appraisals and providing expert witness testimony for property tax appeals.
Keller joined Newmark after more than 12 years with Hotel & Leisure Advisors, a national hospitality and leisure appraisal and consulting firm, where she most recently served as a vice president. Prior to H&LA, Keller served in a similar capacity with US Realty Consultants for four years, most recently as a senior associate. She began her career in hospitality operations at a historic Chicago country club and as a revenue manager and front office manager for Sheraton hotels.
Professional Affiliations
– Chairperson of the Ohio Chapter of the Appraisal Institute’s PR Committee
– Member of and quarterly Ohio Hotel Market Update co-author for Ohio Hotel and Lodging Association (OHLA)
– Member, International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA)
– Member, World Waterpark Association (WWA)
Licenses and Designations
– MAI designation, Appraisal Institute
– Member, International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC)
– Certified general real estate appraiser, states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, and Arizona and commonwealths of Kentucky and Pennsylvania
Speaking Engagements, Publications and Media
Keller regularly shares her expertise with the industry as a panelist, speaker, expert source, and author for industry conferences, presentations, and publications, etc.
Education
Keller earned a Bachelor of Science degree in hospitality management from Purdue University.