Australia has seen a rise in the number of foreign investors buying homes across the country, and an expert has revealed why buyers from China want to live in Australia.
Foreign investors with deep pockets spent almost $5 billion on Australian property in just 12 months, according to a recent report by the Australian Taxation Office.
The Foreign Residential Land Ownership Registry report analyzed data from foreign investors from all countries in the 12 months from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023.
The report found that foreign investors bought 5,360 residential properties, a 27 percent increase from the previous year, for a total value of an impressive $4.9 billion.
Sales by foreign investors lagged behind, with just 1,119 properties worth a total of $1 billion.
Daniel Ho, co-founder and CEO of China-based international property sales website Juwai IQI, told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that Australia was the most popular destination for buyers.
“Today, most Chinese and Hong Kong buyers buy for their own use as they study, work, vacation or retire in Australia,” Ho said.
“Shoppers from mainland China and Hong Kong are among the most active cross-border shoppers in the world…Australia is one of their most popular destinations.”
New data revealed that foreign investors bought 5,360 residential properties worth a total of $4.9 billion (file image, property sold in Sydney)
Ho said investors wanted homes that were “convenient for their lives”, with Sydney being the top target city for Chinese buyers, followed by Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane.
Daniel Ho, co-founder and group CEO of China-based international property sales website Juwai IQI, said Australia was the most popular destination for buyers from Hong Kong and mainland China.
Sydney’s north shore suburbs, including Turramurra, St Ives, Vaucluse and Mosman, were popular with buyers because they offer good schools, leafy surroundings and a relaxed lifestyle.
He added that Chatswood was also a desirable destination among Hong Kong buyers as it offered proximity to desirable schools, the CBD and Chinese shops and restaurants.
In Melbourne, buyers from mainland China and Hong Kong were interested in Pont Cook, Doncaster, Southbank and Toorak.
Ho said foreign investors have a large budget and most spend more than the average home price.
He explained that one of his clients was a young man who worked and saved hard to buy a one-bedroom apartment in Canberra.
The client, who works and studies at a university in Sydney, plans to live in Australia and bought the apartment as an investment until he finishes his degree.
However, Mr Ho said many families he works with are spending “tens of millions” on properties considered the most expensive in Australia.
Mr Ho said Sydney’s north shore suburbs were popular with buyers because they offered good schools, leafy surroundings, a relaxed lifestyle and proximity to the city.
Mr Ho said the increase in overseas buyers seen in the ATO report showed that overseas investors were recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic.
He added that in the coming years a significant number of people from mainland China and Hong Kong would move to Australia.
“There is a significant wave of post-Covid migration as people act on plans they had to put on hold during the pandemic,” Ho said.
‘Economic trends, political relations and government regulations and tariffs can push numbers up or down, but the basic truth is that Australia is an attractive country and many people would like to live here.’
Ho explained that the ATO report included buyers from around the world, including parts of Asia, North America, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Europe.
Overseas buyers from all sources preferred Melbourne as their top destination, with overseas buyers investing in Queensland rather than New South Wales.
“This is the second year in a row that more overseas buyers have purchased in Queensland than in New South Wales,” Mr Ho said.
However, Victoria and New South Wales attracted more millionaire buyers than the Sunshine State.
The Australian Taxation Office’s Foreign Ownership Registry of Residential Land report found Victoria to be the most popular state for all foreign buyers, followed by Queensland and then New South Wales (pictured)
“Overseas buyers bought 284 homes in New South Wales during the year worth at least $1 million, compared to just 200 in Queensland,” Mr Ho said.
‘Victoria had by far the largest number of millionaire buyers, with 569 transactions from overseas buyers worth more than $1 million each.’
The report from the foreign ownership registry of residential land found that prime locations for foreign buyers included Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sydney.
Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland accounted for 74.9 per cent of all homes purchased by foreign investors.
The median home price was $914,000, and the report found that luxury properties worth more than $1 million accounted for 78 percent of homes purchased.
The report did not provide a breakdown of the percentage of nationalities buying property in Australia.