Properties Residences on the fringes of a golf course provide investors and homeowners security, status and the lifestyle that is second to none
Imagine a golf course in your own backyard. Like you could sink a chip shot from your bathtub. For many years in Asia, dreams like this were a long shot. But as golf has gained popularity and incomes have risen, so has the demand for golf real estate.
'The sport continues to rise in Asia with the number of golfers tripling in recent years, in part because of the popularity of Tiger Woods along with a rising number of Asian golf stars,' says David Blackhall, deputy managing director, VinaCapital Real Estate, a company with interests in golf properties in Vietnam.
'Golf in China is more than a sport, it is a business language and medium of social networking to link the east and the west,' explains Ken Chu, vice-chairman of Mission Hills Group, which oversees Mission Hills Golf Club, the largest golf club in the world with 216 holes on 12 courses, and the nearby Mission Hills in Residence in Shenzhen.
Dr Chu has given a lot of thought to the growth of the sport in his country. 'Chinese people generally do not go to bars and do not like clubs either, they like mahjong and karaoke. Westerners don't see a link with Chinese in terms of the social activities, so golf becomes a natural medium between east and west,' he says. 'It is ironic, but golf is an outlet for business communication. You can play it to get out of work, but it is also an extension of the office.'
Despite the burgeoning passion for the game among the middle classes, owning a golf property is still out of reach for the masses. This is because living on a golf course in Asia takes serious money. In the case of properties at Mission Hills in Residence, a recent launch of 26 homes ranged in price from 70million yuan (HK$79.8million) to 150 million yuan. 'Golfers have higher incomes than non-golfers and living on or near the course is an attractive alternative to the more traditional locations,' Mr Blackhall says, noting that his company's research has shown sales prices vary significantly.