Mainland Chinese would most prefer to buy properties in Australia, the United States and Canada, showing a different consumption pattern to Hong Kong people, according to the property investment firm IP Global.
Some 21% of the 1001 respondents from China were interested in buying property in Australia, a survey compiled by YouGov, a British market research firm, showed. Around 19% prefered real estate in the US, while 17% favored Canada.
Other mainland Chinese respondents were interested in buying properties in the UK (11%), Japan (9%) and Germany (8%).
By comparison, of 1006 Hong Kong respondents, three out of 10 said they would prefer to buy properties in Japan, while those interested in Australian and UK properties each accounted for 21%.
Some Hong Kong respondents were also interested in real estate in Canada (14%), the US (13%) and Germany (4%).
Given that only 4% of mainland Chinese respondents were looking to invest in property abroad, there is a long way for overseas property investment to develop in China, said Jonathan Gordon, Director at IP Global, who commissioned the research.
In Canada, locals are furious with rising prices of housing. Often Chinese buyers are not interested in living there , but "flipping" and making a profit. It is a method of buying and selling same property several times before it ends up in the hands of final buyer! Some provinces have introduced 15% tax every time it is sold for foreign residents!