Chinese investment in US property cools amid US-China trade war

The appetite among Chinese investors for US property has cooled this year, although the softening could be temporary given the allure of US dollar denominated assets and the appeal of real estate as a store of offshore wealth, according to analysts.

Hong Kong and mainland China investments in the US property market amounted to US$4.42 billion from January to October, compared to US$6.81 billion for the whole of last year, according to data by Colliers.

Property analysts cautioned that Chinese buyers had turned skittish amid growing trade frictions between China and the US, although the longer term impacts of the trade war were hard to forecast.

Chinese inquiries about US property dropped 11.4 per cent in September, steeper than the 8.2 per cent decline in the first half, according to Chinese property website Juwai.com.

"Under the trade war you won't expect too many foreign buyers looking at the [property] market anyway, and basically all Chinese investors have disappeared,” said Antonio Wu, Colliers International deputy managing director for capital markets and investment services.

The US property market has softened with sales of both new and existing homes falling in September, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. In September, new single-family home sales slipped 5.5 per cent on month, and are down 13.2 per cent on year.

There are two views among Chinese buyers towards international real estate currently, according to Carrie Law, director and chief executive officer of Chinese international website Juwai.com.