Latest NewsSurge in expat demand for high-end propertiesSunday, 25 April 2021


Expats are bidding from New York, London, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Safe house Aussies overseas are vying for exclusive digs at home.

Demand from wealthy expat Australians for prestigious investment properties and homes has ‘‘exploded’’ because buyers believe the nation’s worldleading containment and management of COVID-19 make it a safer place to live.

Overseas buyers, typically in the world’s leading financial centres, are making competing telephone bids for multimillion-dollar properties they have inspected online or viewed via footage from drones, but not visited.

An agent from Sydney's eastern suburbs said five of 15 bidders at a recent auction for a freestanding cliff-top family home, were calling from New York, London, Hong Kong and Singapore. It sold for $7.5 million.

Unprecedented numbers are seeking to buy and agents are taking calls between 2am and 4am from northern hemisphere buyers and demand is strong for properties in the $8 million to $50 million range, particularly from families with school-aged children.

However, once you reach a certain price point, it is difficult for overseas buyers to make a decision without a physical inspection, which can be hard because of COVID-19.

Other factors driving buyers to Australia include concerns about the crackdown in Hong Kong and gun violence in the US.

In Singapore, Andrew Unterweger, chairman of Wise Guru, which advises expatriates on residential property, said demand for Australian property had tripled in the past year, particularly for east coast capitals and the Gold and Sunshine coasts. ‘‘It is as busy as I’ve seen it. Volumes have exploded,’’ said Mr Unterweger, who has been advising buyers for about 30 years.

More than 500,000 Australians have returned since the government recommended reconsidering overseas travel in March last year, according to a spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

 

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