Chinese Buyers Fastest Growing International Niche

Chinese buyers rank as the world’s fastest-growing population of property buyers, and they’re especially eager to invest in North American real estate. They’re expected to spend $114 billion on overseas property by 2015.

Reaching the Chinese buyer, however, is not as simple as listing a house online or taking out an advertisement in a Chinese magazine.

Pauline Ha, a Chinese-American real estate agent with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Mason-McDuffie in San Francisco, recommends a strategy that emphasizes customer service first and foremost. Her company is one of several ramping up its sales force and marketing initiatives to attract foreign buyers.

There is also a language barrier. An American Realtor who doesn’t speak Mandarin must use an interpreter, Mason-McDuffie’s Ed Krafchow recommends. At the same time, agents should be wary of using translating machines to create Chinese language content because they’re not always accurate. There is a good chance the technology could erroneously translate a Realtor’s actual meaning, prompting Chinese regulators to assume the agent is trying to mislead its citizens.

“For a broker to put a listing through a machine translator, you’re putting your broker license in jeopardy,” warns Andrew Taylor, co-CEO of Juwai.com, a Chinese-based global property listings site. “Make sure you’re hosted in China for speed, and make sure you’re speaking the right language.”

Source: RISMedia (07/25/13) King, Andrew

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