Brooklyn proving most popular area in New York for Chinese homebuyers
Agents say, however, that Manhattan is still the place to invest
The New York borough of Brooklyn has emerged as the most popular current target in the US city for Chinese homebuyers – but mighty Manhattan still remains the hottest site among those strictly looking for investment returns, according to leading property agencies.
Brooklyn’s ascendancy is down to one thing, says Carrie Law, chief executive of Juwai.com: still relatively low prices in New York city (NYC) compared with top Chinese counterparts.
“Chinese residents make up the largest immigrant group in Brooklyn. Its Sunset Park neighbourhood, particularly, is now one of the largest China towns in all five of New York’s boroughs,” she said.
“Brooklyn’s median listing prices are around HK$5,930 (US$760) per square foot, according to Zillow, [an online real estate database], but a flat in Beijing’s city centre can cost HK$11,225/sq ft, nearly twice as much,” according to Numbeo, another real estate website.
The median price per square foot in the NYC district of Queens is also lower than Beijing, at around HK$3,900/sq ft, though Manhattan’s median price per square foot is still higher at HK$14,063, according to Zillow.
“Chinese buyers can’t help but do the maths and compare the prices in Queens or Brooklyn to those back home, say, in Beijing or Shanghai,” added Law.