SAN JOSE, California — The market for hotel purchases has nosedived in both the Bay Area and California, in a sign that investors believe the weakness in the lodging sector has yet to run its course.

Measured by dollar amount, acquisitions of hotels plunged by 48.3% in Northern California and by 60.2% in Southern California, Atlas Hospitality reported. The Northern California market includes the Bay Area.

Statewide, hotel purchase activity plummeted 56.3% in 2023 in California. This represented the second-worst decline ever documented by Atlas Hospitality Group, which tracks the lodging industry in the state.

These were the highest-priced hotel deals in the Bay Area in 2023, according to the Atlas Hospitality Survey:

— Claremont Hotel Club & Spa in the Oakland-Berkeley area. The 276-room hotel resort was bought for $163 million.

— Signia by Hilton South Tower in downtown San Jose. The 264-room southern tower was bought for $73.1 million. It’s being converted into housing for San Jose State University students.

— Hotel Zoe in San Francisco. The 221-room hotel was bought for $68.5 million.

The decline in sales activity is a result of hotel buyers staying on the sidelines at a time of economic uncertainty and murky prospects for the lodging sector, according to Alan Reay, president of Irvine-based Atlas Hospitality Group.

“Most investors are in a wait-and-watch situation,” Reay said.

In 2023, Northern California hotel purchases totaled $1.45 billion, down from the 2022 total of nearly $2.8 billion.

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