Middle-class Asian families are snapping up Australian property as they send their children down under to study, say analysts
- More middle-class families in Asia are choosing to send their children to Australia to be educated, and buying property at the same time
- Education for international students is the country’s third-largest export, worth over A$31 billion (US$20.3 billion) a year
Australia is becoming a new hotbed for Asian investors as more middle-class families are choosing to send their children down under for education, and buying property along the way.
There were 9.5 million visitor arrivals in Australia last year, the highest on record, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The biggest proportion of them came from China, accounting for 1.4 million, or 14.7 per cent, of the total.
Five other Asian nations fell within the top 10 countries of origin – Japan, Singapore, India, Malaysia, and South Korea – while Hong Kong ranked ninth.
Some 6.6 per cent of short-term visitors who stayed in Australia for less than a year came for educational purposes.
Spending by international visitors on education grew by 7 per cent, according to figures released from Tourism Research Australia’s annual international visitor survey.
Education for international students is the country’s third-largest export, worth over A$31 billion (US$20.3 billion) a year, according to consulting firm Urbis’ Brisbane CBD Market Research Report released in December.
According to a report by Chinese property portal Juwai in November, Australia has been the second most favoured country in terms of enquiries by Chinese buyers worldwide since 2015.
One factor driving the Chinese to Australia was the increased number of students opting to study down under, prompting parents to purchase homes for their children, according to Juwai.