Rich foreign investors from Asia have spent more on Australian real estate during the past decade than buyers from some Western nations, Foreign Investment Review Board data showed
Rich Asians are even more interested in Australian property during the coronavirus pandemic. Cashed-up investors from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Japan have spent more on Australian real estate during the past decade than buyers from the United States, the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Germany, Foreign Investment Review Board data showed.
Buyers from mainland China were allowed to snap up £92.51billion ($113.2billion) worth of Australian residential and commercial property in the decade to the 2018-19 financial year, making up 19.3 per cent of all foreign asset purchases.
Buyers from five Asian countries have bought £152.16billion ($186.2billion) worth of Australian real estate during the past ten years, compared with £96.19billion ($117.7billion) from five Western nations.
It’s little wonder Juwai IQI, which specialises in selling foreign real estate to Chinese investors, is now expanding to cater for the very rich in other parts of Asia.
Executive chairman Georg Chmiel said COVID-19 had done little to diminish the determination of Asian property investors to expand their global portfolio.
The coronavirus pandemic has dealt a painful blow to economies all over the world, he said. One bright spot for real estate markets is that the pandemic has also given added motivation to cross-border buyers from Asia.
He also highlighted how potential buyers in Malaysia were eyeing Australian assets. You can live in Kuala Lumpur and want a home in Perth, he said.
Australia is the fourth most popular market for residential property for Asian ultra high-net worth individuals, behind the US, UK and Singapore, London-based property group Knight Frank’s Wealth Report for 2020 found.
The survey of rich Asians, with assets of at least £24.52million ($30million), was taken before the onset of COVID-19.
The very rich particularly liked Sydney’s harbour and beach attractions. Arguably unrivalled for lifestyle, Sydney combines all the first-class amenities of a tier-one city with an outdoor lifestyle in a waterfront location and although non-residents without an investor visa are restricted to new-build purchases only, prime demand remains robust, the Knight Frank report said.
While China has been Australia’s biggest source of foreign real estate investment during the past decade, it wasn’t in 2018-19.
The US had the top spot during the last financial year, with £16.02million ($19.6million) worth of property purchases.
Singapore was next on £8.01billion ($9.8billion), followed by Hong Kong £7.60billion ($9.3billion) and mainland China £4.98billion ($6.1billion).
When it came to approved foreign investment across all asset categories, the US was first, followed by Canada, Singapore, Japan and China.
