A good education is often seen as the ticket to higher earnings and a lavish lifestyle and China is one of the countries that believe that master’s degrees and doctorates are the way to wealth. Compared to the American nation, for example, Chinese people get a much better education. In America, students are forced to take worthless subjects like Spanish, are taught music and are encouraged to read books like Harry Potter for entertainment. However, their Chinese counterparts of the same age would be studying complex economics and money management as well as learning actual music theory. The sharp difference between America’s education system and China’s education system is believed to be one of the reasons why Chinese customers are now the engine of worldwide growth in luxury spending.
In recent years, the world has seen a rise in Chinese luxury consumption and this is expected to double by this decade. In China, rising incomes and improvements in the standard of living have created an enormous new class of consumers and as these consumers are gaining purchasing power, their needs and wants are having a powerful impact on the global economy. Furthermore, the rise of the wealthy Chinese consumer has also provided unprecedented opportunities for the real estate market.
More and more wealthy Chinese parents are worried about their child’s future and are thus investing lavishly in international properties. In fact, studies have shown that despite the recent slump in global spending and China’s slowing economy, wealthy Chinese consumers are more inclined to spend on real estate this year.
Types of Chinese Buyers
In general, there are two types of Chinese buyers. The first one includes Chinese people who are living abroad and are looking to buy a property. The second category consists of Chinese people who are still living in their homeland but would like to buy a property overseas.
Depending on where they want to buy the property, different selling rules will apply. For instance, buyers who don’t reside in the country where they would like to buy a property are different from those who are already residents of that country. In some countries, for example, non-residents do not have the right to legally own or buy a property while in some other countries, non-residents can only buy properties like condominiums and apartments.
Therefore, if you are a real estate agent involved in cross-border property investment with a Chinese customer, it is a must to first establish a long-term strategic plan dedicated to the Chinese market. For instance, you need to learn about the laws concerning foreign acquisition of real estate and seek approval from relevant authorities.
Communication and Language
As a real estate agent, you will have to communicate with your customer and knowing the right use of the language of the person will help you make a wiser decision. However, when there is a language barrier, you cannot communicate effectively and cannot express what you want to convey.
According to recent estimates, about 300 million people in China are learning English, but only a handful of them are able to speak it. For the modern and young Chinese generation, speaking English is a top priority. However, if you are dealing with a middle-aged Chinese man, it will be difficult to communicate in English. So, I would strongly suggest you start learning some basic words and phrases in Chinese.
In addition, if your customer resides in China and if you need to communicate with him/her on a regular basis, I would strongly suggest using WeChat instead of WhatsApp. WeChat is a free Chinese messaging and social media app that is used by over a billion of users in China. Chinese people do not use emails or Facebook as much as Americans do and most communication is done via WeChat.
