Technology improvements make it even easier for overseas property transactions.
There is no avoiding that we live in a digital age. Listings for properties are rarely found in the classified section of the newspaper. Real estate agents rely less on the advertising in their windows. The market can move at such a pace that it is impossible to keep up with marketing materials. And relying just on photos alone just won’t do anymore. Technology has become key.
This has been been proved by an investor in Hong Kong who bought a property in Sydney via FaceTime. Costing AUS 3.65 million, the purchaser ‘viewed’ the property via their smartphone rather than in person. The agent walked the purchaser through the property in 40 minutes. The next day he made an offer despite being 7,000 kilometres away.
The Internet has really opened up the property market to the world. Enabling you to view property from the opposite corner that you are based in has made property an even more lucrative asset. Online marketing tools constantly widen the net for purchasers. Virtual tours and 360 degree photos are increasingly used, a photo and floorplan will no longer suffice.
Social media.
Tools such as Facebook videos may not be able to give you the same feeling as actually being in the property, but what they can do is eliminate any prospective options for purchasers before a viewing. This is a huge appeal as many people are time short. Plus property purchases are often for investment so need to make financial sense rather than be right emotionally that a viewing in person can ascertain.
This development of the real estate industry could not have come at a better time. Hong Kong is retaining it title at the most expensive place to own property, Mainland China is restricting the flow of outward funds and the Yuan is depreciating, many residents are looking further afield to invest their money. According to real estate firm Knight Frank, Chinese investors and developers spent an impressive USD 1.7 billion in Australia for the first half of 2016. The use and development of technology will make these spending sprees even easier, and more properties are expected to be purchased through these means.