Category: Australia & New Zealand

Investing in Australia Commercial Property: A Complete Guide

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Do you plan to buy property in Australia?
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Australia is popular among commercial property investors who look for a politically stable country with a strong economy in the Asia Pacific.

With a growing population, especially in the bigger cities, we’ll see a greater demand for commercial property here in the future.

Commercial property can give you high returns, but is rarely talked about compared to residential property. In fact, commercial property generally gives you a return of 5% – 12%, while residential property averages at around 3% – 4% in Australia.

In this guide, you’ll learn how you can invest in commercial property in Australia as a foreigner, where to invest, how high the taxes are, and more.

Can foreigners buy commercial property in Australia?

Foreigners generally don’t have any issues to invest in commercial property. However, you sometimes need approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB).

Continue reading Investing in Australia Commercial Property: A Complete Guide

Buying Hotels in New Zealand: A Guide for Investors

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Do you plan to buy property in New Zealand?
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New Zealand has been in the media headlines due to its significantly overheated residential property market. The commercial property market is less frequently spoken about, even if it offers great investment opportunities to foreigners.

New Zealand continues to attract travelers who want to enjoy its nature and perhaps seek a safe haven. Here, foreign property ownership regulations are on par with most Western countries, something that I will explain more about in this article.

Today, we cover the following topics:

  • Can foreigners buy hotels in New Zealand?
  • Foreign Hotel Ownership Regulations
  • The Hotel Market in New Zealand
  • Commercial Real Estate Agents in New Zealand
  • Best Cities for Hotel Investments in New Zealand
  • FAQ

Can foreigners buy hotels in New Zealand?

New Zealand has preferable property foreign ownership regulations and you can even buy hotels and resorts as an individual here. As mentioned in previous articles, the regulations bring some similarities to Australia. Continue reading Buying Hotels in New Zealand: A Guide for Investors

Buying Hotels in Australia: A Full Guide

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Do you plan to buy property in Australia?
Click here to get in touch with an experienced agent

Australia has seen a great increase in foreign visitors in the past decade and where Chinese tourists have played a vital role in the hotel industry.

Without facing a recession for decades, we’ve seen a slowing market recently and 2020 was one of the worst years with no further explanation needed.

Yet, this also leaves room for investment opportunities as firms and HNWI’s look for low price points in large-sized hotel projects.

Due to the increased interest in Australia hotels, I decided to write this article and where we review the following:

  • Can foreigners buy hotels in Australia?
  • Hotel Development Regulations in Australia
  • The Hotel Market in Australia
  • Best Cities for Hotel Investments in Australia
  • FAQ

Can foreigners buy hotels in Australia?

Australian ownership regulations bring many similarities to New Zealand and you generally don’t have any issues to buy hotels as a foreigner. Continue reading Buying Hotels in Australia: A Full Guide

Investing in New Zealand Commercial Property: A Complete Guide

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Do you plan to buy property in New Zealand?
Click here to get in touch with an experienced agent

New Zealand has experienced great residential price increases recently, a market that is frequently discussed in the media.

With that said, the commercial property market is not as overheated and often offers higher yields.

Compared to developing countries in the Asia Pacific, you’ll find it easier to buy real estate here as a foreigner. In this article, I cover the following topics:

  • Can foreigners buy commercial property in New Zealand?
  • Requirements when Buying Commercial Real Estate
  • Commercial Property Types Available for Foreigners in New Zealand
  • Cities to Invest in Commercial Property
  • Commercial Property Taxes
  • FAQ

Can foreigners buy commercial property in New Zealand?

New Zealand is an open economy with property ownership regulations similar to Australia. Continue reading Investing in New Zealand Commercial Property: A Complete Guide

Australia Property Market Outlook 2020: A Complete Overview

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Australia is the to-go place for people who wish to live in a stable nation, offering great education, and a comfortable climate. Foreign investors, many from China, have flooded the market and real estate prices have reached record-breaking levels.

Worth mentioning is that Australia has never experienced a major decline and didn’t suffer much during the subprime crash 2008 when prices continued upwards. There are several interesting reasons behind this, of course.

In this article, I explain how Australia’s property market has performed in the past years and what the predictions are for 2019.

Australia’s Property Market in Previous Years

Australia’s property market was booming in 2016 to 2017 and we saw house prices breaking all-time high records. The millennials were even told to give up eating avocado toast if they ever wanted to afford a house.

According to Huffington Post Australia, the house price growth in recent years are related to:

  • Investor activity in Sydney and Melbourne
  • Low interest rates
  • Tax incentives such as negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts

Theconversation.com has an illustrative chart that shows how housing prices have continuously been in decline, after hitting a peak in the 3rd quarter of 2017. It’s also the first annual decline since 2012.

Lower demand for homes and a tightening of lending to investors played a big role in the price falls according to the ABS Chief Economist, Bruce Hockman. Regulators have progressively clamped down risky lending, such as interest-only mortgages.

With around 40% of Australians having interest-only mortgages, it’s a wise choice. The banks have toughen-up previously lax expense and income verification. Continue reading Australia Property Market Outlook 2020: A Complete Overview

List of Serviced Apartments in Bangkok: Our Top 7 Picks

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Are you moving to Bangkok and looking for a suitable serviced apartment?

Bangkok is one of the busiest business and tourist cities in Southeast Asia, this is also reflected in the wide choice of serviced apartment companies that operate here.

A serviced apartment represents a flexible option, whether you are planning to travel to Bangkok for business or vacation purposes.

In this article, we list 7 serviced apartment companies and compare them according to their rent span, unit size, minimum duration of stay, location and facilities.

Overview

Benefits of renting a serviced apartment in Bangkok

First of all, serviced apartments are different than traditional apartments, as you don’t have to buy furniture or kitchen appliances, as they come fully furnished and equipped. Continue reading List of Serviced Apartments in Bangkok: Our Top 7 Picks

Top 10 Real Estate Agencies in Australia: The Ultimate Guide

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Australia continues to be one of the most popular destinations for overseas property buyers in the Asia Pacific.

Here, you’ll find dozens of international real estate agencies and tens of thousands of real estate agents. If you’re about to buy Australian property, you need to assure that you work with a credible agency that has a decent track record.

In this article, I’ve listed some of the biggest and most reputable real estate agencies in Australia.

1. Ray White

Ray White is one of the oldest and biggest real estate companies in Australia. With over 116 years of experience, they’ve expanded to numerous locations overseas, namely: New Zealand, Indonesia, China (including Hong Kong S.A.R), the Middle East, and Atlanta (USA).

Despite having around 1,000 individually owned offices, it continues to be a family owned business. You’ll notice that Ray White has a strong presence in places with a high concentration of Australians, for example in Bali. Continue reading Top 10 Real Estate Agencies in Australia: The Ultimate Guide

How to Buy Property in New Zealand: A Complete Guide

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Foreign investors, especially from China, have invested heavily in New Zealand during the past years. One of the main reasons is that they want to find a stable place to allocate cash and for overseas studies.

Yet not only Asian investors decide to invest in New Zealand, but we also see many investors from the US, Malaysia, and other regional countries.

However, before you go into detailed planning, it’s important that you know if foreigners can even buy property, what property types are available, about taxes, and more.

In this article, you’ll learn the following:

Can foreigners buy property in New Zealand?

Previously, foreigners generally didn’t have any issues buying property in New Zealand.

However, the government has forbidden non-resident foreigners from buying established property, to curb escalating property prices.

According to the Overseas Investment Office (OIO), you need to increase the number of residences and then sell the lot as a non-resident. You can do this by, for example, converting the land or by constructing an apartment building where a house was previously built.

No one knows when this will be lifted, but for now, you need to look at other countries if you’re a non-resident and cannot fulfill these criteria.

Continue reading How to Buy Property in New Zealand: A Complete Guide

Buying Off-Plan Property in Perth: By Amanda Gauci

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Perth is the capital and the biggest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. Being the 4th most populous city, Perth offers a great quality of life with white beaches and property prices that are not as propped up compared to Melbourne and Sydney.

Interestingly, the distance to Jakarta is shorter than if you would travel from Perth to Sydney or Melbourne, giving you more proximity to the rest of Asia.

Off-plan property is a preferred choice when foreigners invest in Perth and Australia, a reason why I decided to invite Amanda Gauci, the founder and managing director of Pulse Property Solutions, a boutique property development company located in Perth.

Today she will explain about:

  • Perth’s property market
  • The process when buying off-plan property
  • Benefits of buying in Perth
  • Interesting projects built by Pulse Property Solutions, including illustrations

Welcome Amanda, first, can you please tell us a little bit more about yourself, your history, and how Pulse Property Solutions helps foreign buyers to buy off-plan in Perth?

I founded Pulse Property Solutions ten years ago with my family with the aim to create unique boutique developments that people love living in. I come from a business and marketing background which provides a unique approach to development and design.

I’m passionate about the development industry and am part of the HIA Environment, Planning & Development Committee, and a board member of Entrepreneurs Organisation Perth.

Continue reading Buying Off-Plan Property in Perth: By Amanda Gauci

Top 10 Property Developers in New Zealand: A Complete Guide

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New Zealand has attracted many foreigners, especially Chinese, who wish to have a safe haven in the future. Property prices have increased much over the years, forcing the government to introduce cooling measures.

Not surprisingly, a preferred option is to buy off-plan property, giving you the opportunity to design and move into a brand new property. Therefore, I decided to write an article about some of the biggest residential property developers in New Zealand.

Let’s have a look.

1. Conrad Properties

Conrad Properties Group is one of the biggest property developers and investment companies in New Zealand. Conrad Properties is also known as the largest apartment developer as they mostly develop medium and high-rise apartment buildings.

Conrad Properties was founded in 1994 with its head office situated in Auckland. It also has regional offices in Sydney, Singapore, and Hong Kong. They develop properties outside of New Zealand, mainly in Australia, but also in Canada, Bermuda, China, and Singapore.

Property types

Almost all of their projects are high-rise apartment buildings. Although one of their first projects, G Urban Work Spaces, was a mixed-use project. After that, they’ve only developed residential apartment buildings.

Current projects

  • Queens Residences
  • The Ivory Epsom
  • Urba Residences
  • The Vincent
  • Soho Apartments

Future projects

Continue reading Top 10 Property Developers in New Zealand: A Complete Guide