Can (And Will) Chinese Investors Eat Up All The Australian Properties?
Louis Christopher for the website streetnews.com.au writes a poignant piece on what he believes to be a clear case of misplaced fear. He feels that our stance towards Chinese investors is nothing but xenophobia. Our assumption that they will eat up all the properties, leaving nothing for us, is quite a laughable proposition.
Foreign investors restricted to off the plan properties
As a first, this simply cannot be the case as foreign investors are only allowed to put their money into off the plan (pre-construction) properties. They cannot put their hands into the existing properties (and hence the assumption that they will eat up all the properties is farcical).
Further investment restrictions in place
Furthermore, as a temporary resident, you can buy only a single property at a time. This rule is very effective in countering any possible argument that they can hoard properties. On top of this, they must sell the purchased property before leaving the country shores. What more proof, says Christopher, do we need to cast away this xenophobic attitude?
Chinese have done their bit to deserve respect
Chinese have been an integral part of the Australian community and for a century and more they have worked industriously towards building this country.
Who are these Chinese-looking citizens anyway?
Some of us complain that they were done in by Chinese-looking citizens at an auction but there is hardly any data to back these facts. First, we should examine who these Chinese looking citizens are?
We know that a lot many Chinese living within Australian shores (and there are plenty of them) are third or fourth or even fifth generation Australians now. To question their loyalty to our country will be nothing short of fooling ourselves.
You can read the original article here.
Very well pointed out Christopher! I think that we should only look towards history to find out their sizeable contribution. Moreover, their large numbers fully illustrate how well we have warmed up to them. For instance, NSW has nominated China as one of its five most favoured ancestries.
We can go back to the time of Gold Rush and subsequent migration and we can also go back to Bob Hawke and his declaration making it easier for students of mainland China to settle forever in Australia. The idea is that we have created grounds for their lawful entry and they have done nothing to deserve apathy or prejudice.
Also, there are plenty of policies in place (duly pointed out by Christopher) which will prevent any unwanted intrusion of Chinese investors into Australian properties. All this to say that we should not be yellow-eyed in treating our Chinese friends without backing up our behaviour with hard data and evidence.
Do you think our policies will ever allow Chinese investors to grab the complete real estate pie?
